Darcy Sengewald does not mind going last.
The senior designated player has batted ninth for Northwestern the past three seasons and has done a good job flipping the lineup over.
Sengewald has 89 career walks, the third most in school history, setting up the Wildcats’ potent offense.
She hit a memorable home run off of NCAA all-time strikeouts leader Monica Abbott in a 2-0 victory over Tennessee in the 2006 Women’s College World Series.
Daily Sports’ Adam Fusfeld talked with the Wildcats’ lone senior after her final regular season game at Sharon J. Drysdale Field.
Daily Sports: Your nickname is “D-Money,” where did that come from?
Sengewald: Well, D-Money is the nickname given to me my freshman year by Courtnay Foster, our (current) assistant coach, and it just kind of stuck. We had all the dollar signs and everything and everyone just calls me D-Money. So I just go with it, I like it.
Daily: Do you have any pre-game rituals or superstitions?
DS: I think that not only do I have a lot of superstitions but our whole team does. We all hit in the same order, get ready in the same order and put our spikes on in the same order. I also put my uniform on in the same order before every game.
Daily: How would you describe Darcy Sengewald in the locker room before a game?
DS: I’m pretty calm in the locker room before games. I just really want to focus on the game. But we all get really excited for the games, so the locker room is a lot of fun. It’s a time when everyone can get ready to go and really help each other out.
Daily: What is it like being the most experienced player, the only senior, on the team?
DS: You know, I don’t really feel like I’m the only senior. I think on our team this year, everyone has done a great job stepping up, and they’ve made my job a lot easier being a leader. Everyone’s a leader, and so it’s great to be part of a group like that, it’s great to be on top of people like that.
Daily: Were you nervous at all on senior day, honoring you?
DS: No, it felt pretty much like every other game. I wasn’t really that nervous, but it was a lot of fun. It was just great to have everyone here and all my teammates supporting me, and it was just a great day.
Daily: And then hitting the home run…
DS: Yeah that was just icing on the cake. It was great.
Daily: What’s the best part about being on the softball team?
DS: I just think that all the friends I’ve made will be my family forever. I have 16 people that are my best friends that I can count on for anything. So it’s a lot of fun to see them every day and do everything together.
Daily: You played at third base most of your time here. How did it feel to be the designated player as you were so often this year?
DS: I just get really excited to play softball. I came to Northwestern to play softball and to help this team win a national championship and I think we’re definitely on our way, and that’s pretty much how I look at that.
Daily: What is your favorite dugout cheer that you guys do?
DS: I like all of our cheers. I really like when we get to sing the fight song because everyone gets really into it. We can get the crowd into it, so it’s a lot of fun.
Daily: What makes coach (Kate) Drohan such a great coach?
DS: I think Kate is such a great coach because she understands not only softball, but life. I think she does a great job with really mentoring everyone, and she’s a great coach and really a great person.
Daily: You’ve hit a bunch of big home runs during your career. You hit one in the College World Series two years ago, one against No.1 Alabama earlier this season, and one on the day you were honored as the team’s lone senior. What’s your most memorable home run?
DS: I would say my most memorable home run is the one I hit in the World Series against Monica Abbot (Tennessee’s former star pitcher) two years ago. I mean, I remember all my home runs because I only hit 11 in my career, but that was probably the best one.
Daily: What is the best class you’ve taken at Northwestern?
DS: My favorite class was called Learning for Complex Environments. My major is (Learning and Organizational Change), and (the class) taught me a lot about life and it really helped me with softball and everything, so it’s probably been my favorite class.
Daily: So then what are your plans post-graduation?
DS: You know, I plan on doing something in the business world. Hopefully consulting, maybe even coaching softball someday, so everything’s helpful to me.
Daily: What’s your favorite thing about Northwestern?
DS: I really love Northwestern. I think it’s a great balance between athletics and academics, and that’s why I came here. And I still feel that way, and I’m going to leave Northwestern with a degree, and I’m going to leave playing four years of softball, and I can’t imagine anything better than that.
