Northwestern stepped onto the field Saturday hoping to flip the script on its postseason shortcomings from a year prior.
With a return to the winner’s bracket of the NCAA Tournament Regional — facing opening-round host No. 11 Clemson this time — the Wildcats (30-20-1, 16-6 Big Ten) had reached the same stage where last year’s run began to unravel.
Despite a sharper start and a more competitive showing compared to last season’s Regional losses to No. 1 Texas, coach Kate Drohan’s squad still saw its 2025 campaign come to an end on Saturday when it fell to the Tigers (46-12-0, 19-5 ACC) and Kentucky (31-27-0, 7-17 SEC).
“(I’m) just really proud of the team and how we battled, especially the last month of the season,” Drohan said after her group’s season-ending loss to Kentucky. “Our four seniors will be celebrated for many, many years.”
In the first of two Saturday drubbings, NU held Clemson to a scoreless stalemate through the entire duration of a typical seven-inning softball game, but ultimately fell 1-0 in extra innings.
Graduate student pitcher Lauren Boyd has been NU’s X-factor this season. Before Saturday’s matchup with Clemson, the ’Cats had lost just five games that Boyd started, but held a losing record when any other pitcher commanded the rubber.
After a costly decision to look elsewhere in the rotation contributed to a first-round upset loss to Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament earlier this month, Drohan appeared to change her strategy against the Tigers. Boyd’s return to the circle after downing Kentucky in NU’s tournament-opener Friday marked her first time making back-to-back starts since early February.
In what would become the final start of Boyd’s career, Drohan’s defense flashed the leather to protect the veteran pitcher’s streak of 15 shutout innings before finally allowing Clemson to score the game-winning run in the top of the ninth inning.
One of Clemson’s best scoring chances came in the fifth frame, when runners stood at first and second with no outs. But in the snap of a finger, the threat was erased.
Freshman shortstop Kaylie Avvisato leapt to snag a sharp line drive above her head and quickly fired to senior second baseman Grace Nieto, who turned the ball to junior first baseman Kansas Robinson for a triple play. The highlight earned the No. 4 spot on SportsCenter’s Top 10 on Sunday.
The game’s lone run scored when a successful squeeze bunt followed Clemson’s ninth-inning leadoff triple.
Then, with only one out in the bottom of the frame, sophomore outfielder Isabel Cunnea fouled off eight pitches before she singled to right field, but it wasn’t enough for NU to keep the contest alive.
Following the loss, the ’Cats awaited the winner of Kentucky and South Carolina Upstate to determine their Saturday evening elimination game opponent.
Kentucky won that game in run-rule fashion to take revenge upon Drohan’s group, which had beaten them 4-0 Friday.
NU struck first in its second showdown of the day, plating one run in the bottom of the first inning when Nieto led off the game with a walk and scored on a two-out Robinson triple.
But Kentucky didn’t wait long to unleash an offensive onslaught of its own. In a second inning that forced two different NU pitching changes, Kentucky scored seven runs on five hits and five walks before the inning ended on a groundout.
Kentucky tacked on an additional run in the top of the third frame, while the ’Cats failed to score in the following five innings.
NU plated two runs in the final inning, but it wasn’t nearly enough to secure the comeback and save their season.
“I think it was obvious that the game this morning took a lot out of us,” Drohan said after the loss to Kentucky. “We had one tough inning, but other than that, I thought we battled really hard.”
Following the two losses to Clemson and Kentucky, NU’s season is over.
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— Softball: Northwestern rolls past Kentucky in NCAA Tournament opener, moves on to winners bracket
— Softball: Pachuta: Drohan has the right recipe for postseason success
— Softball: Northwestern punches 7th-straight NCAA Tournament ticket
