Northwestern shortstop Tammy Williams dug into the circle, shook off the catcher and hurled a fastball by an opposing slugger.
Though difficult to imagine, that was reality for Williams just four years ago. She had pitched throughout her softball career, but going into college she knew she did not want to do it anymore.
“I was originally going to go to a smaller school and be a pitcher until I could play infield,” Williams said. “I didn’t want to pitch anymore, so I would have gone to a smaller school for a year and hopefully transferred from there.”
But just weeks before school began in 2005, Williams committed to attend NU. Coach Kate Drohan had a void to fill at the shortstop position and was impressed with what she saw in Williams.
“We needed her to be a shortstop, so we converted her,” Drohan said. “I saw her play two games at third base and her range was in the dugout, and I said: ‘We have to put this kid in the middle of the field.'”
Williams eased seamlessly into the starting shortstop position, playing every game her freshman year while batting in the top third of the order all season. She set a school record for home runs, with 14, while batting .377 and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year.
In her sophomore campaign, Williams increased her home run total to 16 and her batting average to .425. Additionally, she began to take on a leadership role. She mentored fellow middle infielder Nicole Pauly, who went on to succeed Williams as the conference’s top freshman.
“When I came in last year, Tammy was the one that was kind of in my right pocket all the time,” Pauly said. “She was really the one that made me step up and play like I wasn’t a freshman anymore.”
This year, Williams has continued to lead her team on and off the field. Everyone from freshman Robin Thompson to sophomore ace Lauren Delaney has said that the shortstop contributes to their success.
When the Cats lost three-time Big Ten Player of the Year Garland Cooper to graduation, Williams worked extensively to fill the void Cooper left. Even when her bat has faltered, the junior slugger has found other ways to reach base.
“If I’m not having a good day, I know that I can always just try to beat a ball out,” Williams said. “That’s something that I didn’t necessarily have as much the last two years, and it’s a huge advantage. I think it’s something I’m going to rely on the rest of the postseason and the rest of my career.”
Williams’ hard work has been on display during the NCAA tournament. Mired in a mini-slump, she found a way to get a hit on Saturday by laying down a perfect bunt and beating the throw for a base hit that traveled all of 20 feet. With that, the slump was effectively over, as she homered in both of Sunday’s games.
Entering the second round of the tournament, Williams is hitting .457 on the season and has continued her assault on NU’s record book. She holds school records in batting average and runs scored and is second all-time in home runs and RBIs.
The star shortstop has also put a lot of time into improving her defense and learning the nuances of playing a key position.
“Not being a shortstop before, I kind of had to learn to do every aspect of the game,” Williams said. “This year, I think I’ve worked a lot on slapper defense and really just covering the whole field.”
It is that work ethic that has allowed this former pitcher to grow into one of the best players in NU history and one of 10 finalists for the 2008 National Softball Player of the Year.
“Tammy Williams, as she’s done every year, has gotten better,” Drohan said. “I think that’s really the sign of a great player.”
