When it snowed this winter, freshman J.C. Kira got excited. She raced outside, took pictures, whipped snowballs at friends and had a good time.

Of course, she also took a couple of spills on the black ice.

But it was all part of the unexpected elements of a 4000-mile change in location.

The Honolulu native – now the starting catcher for the Northwestern softball team – is learning to survive the elements, wear her winter coat more and, most importantly, play through chilly weather.

“It was hard at first,” said Kira, who saw snow for the first time this winter, “but I’m getting more accustomed to my role as far as what I have to do as a catcher.”

The Wildcats (11-13, 2-2 Big Ten) will be relying heavily on Kira this weekend as they face two Big Ten opponents, Minnesota (23-11-1, 2-2) and Wisconsin (21-13, 3-1). The Cats take on the Golden Gophers today in a doubleheader at Anderson Field at 2 p.m.

NU coach Sharon Drysdale said her team will have to connect well in both games to counter the strong pitching of both the Gophers and the Badgers. Andrea Kirchberg leads Wisconsin with a 1.21 ERA, while Piper Marten of Minnesota has a miniscule 0.85 ERA.

“We’re going to have to hit balls and make things happen,” Drysdale said. “We’d prefer to hit the ball because it makes everybody feel good.”

The Cats will have to sparkle defensively as well, especially against Minnesota’s strong base running. The Gophers have stolen 46 bases on the season as opposed to NU’s 37. The Cats’ 24 sacrifices also pale in comparison with Minnesota’s 86.

To alleviate this problem, Drysdale said her team needs to limit the number of players who get on base. She wants her pitchers, Brie Brown and Lauren Schwendimann, to keep walks to a minimum and send the Gophers’ leadoff hitters back to the bench.

Kira, who replaced current third baseman Gretchen Barnes at catcher, will have to step up and pick off Minnesota’s speedy baserunners – a task that the rookie said she is more than ready for. Kira has been a catcher since sixth grade and knows when to go for a pickoff and when to stay conservative.

“One of the main jobs I have is to take care of the runners and make sure they don’t steal or get a big lead off the base,” Kira said. “I like doing it because it gives me a chance to get people.”

She won’t allow the cold weather to stop her, either.

Kira doesn’t drift far from the heater when she’s in the dugout and takes Drysdale’s advice to try not to look cold. After all, Kira said, it was enough of an adjustment to not have to wipe sweat from her face.

“(The cold) doesn’t bother me as long as I can get warm in the dugout and my arms stay warm,” Kira said. “(But) working to get warm was weird at first.”

The team needs to keep its fire burning as well, Drysdale said.

Wisconsin is confident with its Big Ten start, while Minnesota is always an emotional team, Drysdale said – and she expects both games to be hard-fought.

“We’re excited and everybody else is,” Drysdale said. “We’re all in the race.”