2026 NUSB Thread
- Thread starter CoralSpringsCat
- Start date
Only 3 strikeouts? Seems like an odd way to get a no-hitter in softball. Congrats Marina!
The only solution to non-revenue B1G sports are regional pods to reduce travel costs and relieve academic pressure.
POD 1- UCLA. USC. OU UW. 4
POD 2- UNL IOWA MINN WISC (ILL) 4 or 5
POD 3- NU. ILL PURDUE IND OSU(MICH MSU) 5
POD 4- MICH MSU PSU RU UMD(OSU) 5 or 4
Home and away series then regional games with other schools to fill out the schedules. Season ending tournaments to determine conference champions. This format would reduce travel expenses and academic time stress on athletes.
POD 1- UCLA. USC. OU UW. 4
POD 2- UNL IOWA MINN WISC (ILL) 4 or 5
POD 3- NU. ILL PURDUE IND OSU(MICH MSU) 5
POD 4- MICH MSU PSU RU UMD(OSU) 5 or 4
Home and away series then regional games with other schools to fill out the schedules. Season ending tournaments to determine conference champions. This format would reduce travel expenses and academic time stress on athletes.
This sounds good on principle, but there are a few issues. One, USC (Southern Cal) doesn't have a softball team, so you would still only have 3 teams in Pod1. Plus, with 3 perennial top 25 programs in POD1, they might have issue with not having some patsies to beat up on as pretty much a team like UCLA is playing for postseason seeding from day 1, and a couple of extra losses in their Pod might keep them from hosting a regional or super regional.
Epic Cats' collapse today giving up a 9-0 lead after 2 innings (and with Mason going) and losing 11-9, surrendering the go-ahead 3 runs to Michigan in the top of the 7th. Cats' bats largely went into "Cubs mode" after jumping to the run-rule type of lead and barely could muster a hit for the remainder of the game. Mason, staked to the huge lead, couldn't hold it (victimized by the long ball), although, once again, the Cats' poor team defense really hurt.
This team is starting (and will be presumably losing) 4 seniors so this isn't supposed to be a rebuilding year, but barring an improbable finish to the year, this will be the first Cats team to miss the post season since 2017. More alarmingly, since the end of the Danielle Williams era, this team has been trending downward. Ashley Miller and Lauren Boyd largely staunched the bleeding in 2024 and 2025, but it is almost unfair to expect Mason as a true freshman (talented as she is) to carry the team on her own.
There is a true, national-type talent that is signed for next year's class, and she is listed as a P/Util, so maybe she can be plus doing both. Next year's
team will certainly need both. But the troubles of recent teams stem more from recruiting and coaching, and I'm not sure a 20 million dollar stadium is going to solve those problems.
Hopefully Drohan, who had a lengthy down period in the mid 2010's (between the exit of Tammie Williams and the arrival of Danielle Williams) isn't in another one.
This team is starting (and will be presumably losing) 4 seniors so this isn't supposed to be a rebuilding year, but barring an improbable finish to the year, this will be the first Cats team to miss the post season since 2017. More alarmingly, since the end of the Danielle Williams era, this team has been trending downward. Ashley Miller and Lauren Boyd largely staunched the bleeding in 2024 and 2025, but it is almost unfair to expect Mason as a true freshman (talented as she is) to carry the team on her own.
There is a true, national-type talent that is signed for next year's class, and she is listed as a P/Util, so maybe she can be plus doing both. Next year's
team will certainly need both. But the troubles of recent teams stem more from recruiting and coaching, and I'm not sure a 20 million dollar stadium is going to solve those problems.
Hopefully Drohan, who had a lengthy down period in the mid 2010's (between the exit of Tammie Williams and the arrival of Danielle Williams) isn't in another one.
Cats' bats finally come alive this season, scorinig 8, 13 and 17 runs today, in the process of sweeping 3 games on the road from Penn State and
outscoring them 38-9. The blowout weekend pushes the season run differential to +75, suggesting a far better record than being just 1 game over .500 at this stage.
Borderline malpractice, however, from Drohan who sent freshman phenom Marina Mason back out to pitch in the 6th inning of a game where the
Cats had just taken a 17-2 lead. This may have been Mason's worst "win" of the year as she labored over her 5.1 innings pitched, walking 6 through
5 innings, then walking her season high 7th when she went back out in the 6th before being removed. But why was she in there at all? She wasn't dominant today, wasn't working on a no-hitter, and walked 12 batters in her 2 games this weekend, very much out of line with her season performance thus far.
She may be pushing her highest number of innings pitched in a season and certainly has never pitched this many at a higher competition level, so fatigue may becoming a factor, and there was no need at all for her to go back out today. They could have sent a dog out to pitch the 6th, and there would have been a decent chance the run-rule victory would have been preserved. Regardless, even if you don't trust any of your other 4 pitchers, you have to assume they can hold a 15-run lead; if they can't, well, your team probably has bigger problems than the loss.
outscoring them 38-9. The blowout weekend pushes the season run differential to +75, suggesting a far better record than being just 1 game over .500 at this stage.
Borderline malpractice, however, from Drohan who sent freshman phenom Marina Mason back out to pitch in the 6th inning of a game where the
Cats had just taken a 17-2 lead. This may have been Mason's worst "win" of the year as she labored over her 5.1 innings pitched, walking 6 through
5 innings, then walking her season high 7th when she went back out in the 6th before being removed. But why was she in there at all? She wasn't dominant today, wasn't working on a no-hitter, and walked 12 batters in her 2 games this weekend, very much out of line with her season performance thus far.
She may be pushing her highest number of innings pitched in a season and certainly has never pitched this many at a higher competition level, so fatigue may becoming a factor, and there was no need at all for her to go back out today. They could have sent a dog out to pitch the 6th, and there would have been a decent chance the run-rule victory would have been preserved. Regardless, even if you don't trust any of your other 4 pitchers, you have to assume they can hold a 15-run lead; if they can't, well, your team probably has bigger problems than the loss.
A win today that feels a bit more like a loss. Yes, the Cats did win 8-7 over Michigan State, but what was lost was the dominant momentum of the past week when the team took early, big leads and turned them into run-rule victories. Also lost was the recurring hope that somehow, at some time, they would get another above average performance from a pitcher not named Mason.
Sparked by Emma Raye, who had the softball equivalent of a heat check today, the Cats jumped to a 6-0 lead after 2 innings. Perhaps more importantly, Grudzielanek, who started, had pitched capably and shut out MSU over those 2 innings. But unfortunately, it didn't last, and Grudzielanek gave back 5 of the 6 runs over the next 2 innings before Drohan pulled her in the 5th. Cunningham, who came in, got out of the 5th with help from one of the strangest double plays that could possibly happen (throwing out both runners involved in a double steal, including the 2nd at home). She got into more trouble in the 6th, so in comes Mason. Again, all the stats from this season suggest this is a bad move by Drohan. Mason, has largely been ineffective in her relief appearances. She also will be, presumably, starting tomorrow. Bringing her in to try and save a lead against a bad MSU team, is that really necessary? This is unlikely to be the win that ensures a postseason appearance.
Mason gave up a game-tying 2-run double although, in best stat preservation form, she kept her ERA intact by allowing only the inherited runners to score. In the bottom of the 6th, MSU, who committed 6 errors on the day, did everything they could to help the Cats score the go-ahead run by committing errors on back to back plays. Mason gave up a leadoff double in the top of the 7th, and the next batter sacrificed the runner to 3rd, but she recovered to strand the runner and pick up her 12th win of the season. Congratulations, Marina. Still, why is your ace pitcher trying to save a game against MSU sandwiched between her 2 starts? And in the end the offense that looked so hot through 2 innings, ended up being out hit 12-8 for the game and only managed 4 hits after the 2nd. One hitting plus: Medina had her 2nd straight game with a base hit. This team will likely need her to emerge as one of the team's hitting leaders next year given how many players will be departing via graduation.
Sparked by Emma Raye, who had the softball equivalent of a heat check today, the Cats jumped to a 6-0 lead after 2 innings. Perhaps more importantly, Grudzielanek, who started, had pitched capably and shut out MSU over those 2 innings. But unfortunately, it didn't last, and Grudzielanek gave back 5 of the 6 runs over the next 2 innings before Drohan pulled her in the 5th. Cunningham, who came in, got out of the 5th with help from one of the strangest double plays that could possibly happen (throwing out both runners involved in a double steal, including the 2nd at home). She got into more trouble in the 6th, so in comes Mason. Again, all the stats from this season suggest this is a bad move by Drohan. Mason, has largely been ineffective in her relief appearances. She also will be, presumably, starting tomorrow. Bringing her in to try and save a lead against a bad MSU team, is that really necessary? This is unlikely to be the win that ensures a postseason appearance.
Mason gave up a game-tying 2-run double although, in best stat preservation form, she kept her ERA intact by allowing only the inherited runners to score. In the bottom of the 6th, MSU, who committed 6 errors on the day, did everything they could to help the Cats score the go-ahead run by committing errors on back to back plays. Mason gave up a leadoff double in the top of the 7th, and the next batter sacrificed the runner to 3rd, but she recovered to strand the runner and pick up her 12th win of the season. Congratulations, Marina. Still, why is your ace pitcher trying to save a game against MSU sandwiched between her 2 starts? And in the end the offense that looked so hot through 2 innings, ended up being out hit 12-8 for the game and only managed 4 hits after the 2nd. One hitting plus: Medina had her 2nd straight game with a base hit. This team will likely need her to emerge as one of the team's hitting leaders next year given how many players will be departing via graduation.
Cats win 5-4 tonight over NIU in dramatic fashion...
Found the free video feed from NIU in the top of the 7th, so saw the Cats’ 2-run rally. In the bottom of the 7th, after a miserable defensive day which saw the Cats make 5 errors, Cunnea made a great diving catch of a sinking liner to left field that kept the lead off hitter from reaching base. This proved important as the next NIU batter hit a slicing ball down the left field line that Cunnea couldn’t reach and ended up rolling to the wall for a triple. The next batter was retired on a soft line out to the ss, so just one more out was needed. Mason fell behind the next batter 2-1 before a ball was hit sharply to Medina… who kicked it… but recovered spectacularly and made a laser (and on target) throw to 1st base as the runner crossed the bag. No replay on the feed and the runner looked safe to me, but the ump made a delayed, but demonstrative call of out, which brought the NIU coach flying out of the dugout in a rage. She looked like she may have been tossed, but the game was already over!
Mason gets the win, despite allowing the go-ahead, inherited runner to score in the 4th when she came in. No damage to the ERA though! 7 wins in a row now, and they need to keep the streak going, probably all the way to the Big 10 tournament if they want to keep their sliver of a postseason chance alive. Will also need a supply of bengay (or is that icy hot in today’s world) for Mason if she pitches every day from here on out...
Found the free video feed from NIU in the top of the 7th, so saw the Cats’ 2-run rally. In the bottom of the 7th, after a miserable defensive day which saw the Cats make 5 errors, Cunnea made a great diving catch of a sinking liner to left field that kept the lead off hitter from reaching base. This proved important as the next NIU batter hit a slicing ball down the left field line that Cunnea couldn’t reach and ended up rolling to the wall for a triple. The next batter was retired on a soft line out to the ss, so just one more out was needed. Mason fell behind the next batter 2-1 before a ball was hit sharply to Medina… who kicked it… but recovered spectacularly and made a laser (and on target) throw to 1st base as the runner crossed the bag. No replay on the feed and the runner looked safe to me, but the ump made a delayed, but demonstrative call of out, which brought the NIU coach flying out of the dugout in a rage. She looked like she may have been tossed, but the game was already over!
Mason gets the win, despite allowing the go-ahead, inherited runner to score in the 4th when she came in. No damage to the ERA though! 7 wins in a row now, and they need to keep the streak going, probably all the way to the Big 10 tournament if they want to keep their sliver of a postseason chance alive. Will also need a supply of bengay (or is that icy hot in today’s world) for Mason if she pitches every day from here on out...
It looks like the Cardiac Cats™ are back! After probably stealing a win against NIU earlier this week, highlighted by a 2-run, 7th inning rally, the Cats were down 7-5 to open the 7th against Purdue tonight. Back to back walks to Medina and Nieto gave the Cats life and brought their 2 best hitters, Kaylie Avvisato and Emma Raye, to the plate. Avvisato made the 1st out on a pop up to 1st base, but Emma Raye drove a 2-2 pitch over the wall in center field for a 3-run home run!
A lead, but it would be a tortuous lead to hold in the bottom of the 7th. Mason was still in there although it was not a particularly good day for her. She gave up 6 runs (5 earned) in the first 2 innings; however, she batted back after that and limited Purdue to only 1 more run through 6 innings. The bottom of the 7th saw her give up a lead off double and, later, intentionally walking the bases loaded with 1 out, but she managed to retire the next 2 batters on fly outs, the last by the Purdue first baseman, Haley Painter, who had already hit a 3-run home run off of Mason in the 2nd inning.
So, the Cats survive again and run the win streak up to 8. If they can somehow figure a way to win the next 2, especially tomorrow’s game where you guess (can’t say assume anymore) Mason won’t start or be involved in, they would be heavy favorites to sweep a weak Minnesota team at home the last weekend of the season. That would be a 13-game win streak going into the Big 10 tournament. Do that AND win 2 games over ranked teams in the tourney, and they might sneak into a regional with one of the last at-large bids.
Congrats to Mason for winning her 15th game today, but it was neither easy nor pretty. Tonight was another rare outing where she was wild and walked more (7) than had strikeouts (4). She also threw 154 pitches tonight, way more than any other game this season (her high previously was 122 in the 3rd game vs Oregon). I know if you’re the coach, you’re desperately trying to win and perhaps there are no other viable options, but I hope Mason doesn’t wear down. She has now pitched in 6 straight games, including the Penn State game where the Cats took a 17-2 lead and she was still sent back in and threw 13 more pitches before being pulled. She’s probably past her total number of innings pitched in a season as well. Don’t break your star freshman pitcher!
A lead, but it would be a tortuous lead to hold in the bottom of the 7th. Mason was still in there although it was not a particularly good day for her. She gave up 6 runs (5 earned) in the first 2 innings; however, she batted back after that and limited Purdue to only 1 more run through 6 innings. The bottom of the 7th saw her give up a lead off double and, later, intentionally walking the bases loaded with 1 out, but she managed to retire the next 2 batters on fly outs, the last by the Purdue first baseman, Haley Painter, who had already hit a 3-run home run off of Mason in the 2nd inning.
So, the Cats survive again and run the win streak up to 8. If they can somehow figure a way to win the next 2, especially tomorrow’s game where you guess (can’t say assume anymore) Mason won’t start or be involved in, they would be heavy favorites to sweep a weak Minnesota team at home the last weekend of the season. That would be a 13-game win streak going into the Big 10 tournament. Do that AND win 2 games over ranked teams in the tourney, and they might sneak into a regional with one of the last at-large bids.
Congrats to Mason for winning her 15th game today, but it was neither easy nor pretty. Tonight was another rare outing where she was wild and walked more (7) than had strikeouts (4). She also threw 154 pitches tonight, way more than any other game this season (her high previously was 122 in the 3rd game vs Oregon). I know if you’re the coach, you’re desperately trying to win and perhaps there are no other viable options, but I hope Mason doesn’t wear down. She has now pitched in 6 straight games, including the Penn State game where the Cats took a 17-2 lead and she was still sent back in and threw 13 more pitches before being pulled. She’s probably past her total number of innings pitched in a season as well. Don’t break your star freshman pitcher!
Who do you think will be considered the Cats’ MVP for the season? Yes, the season is not over, but regardless of what might happen over the next few weeks, it seems like the only candidates could be Raye and Mason. Between the two, it’s a very close call for me. On one level, without Mason, it almost seems like NU wouldn’t have any wins at all: she has 60% of them now and has pitched so many (effective) innings what would the season have looked like without her. But I feel Raye is really having the special MVP type season. She leads in most of the major offensive categories and, unlike Mason, really doesn’t have a weak spot (such as Mason’s problem this season with extra base hits). The turnaround from last year’s disappointing season is remarkable.
Apparently, Raye broke the previous record for rbi’s in a season by a NU catcher tonight. Interestingly, she did it in front of the great former NU catcher, Jordyn Rudd, who is one of Purdue’s assistant coaches. How about that!
Apparently, Raye broke the previous record for rbi’s in a season by a NU catcher tonight. Interestingly, she did it in front of the great former NU catcher, Jordyn Rudd, who is one of Purdue’s assistant coaches. How about that!
@Faran_Brygo thanks for the updates. Do you have any personal connection to the team or just an avid softball fan?
No connections. I'm just a fan, but I live near UF and see a lot of high level softball on a regular basis.
Wow! Perhaps NU’s finest game of the season today, winning 11-4. A game where the NU starter (Grudzielanek) was knocked out of the game after allowing 3 runs and not recording an out in the first inning. Into the game came Renae Cunningham, who has the highest batting average allowed on the team and, after allowing a run to score on a ground out (Purdue’s fourth), proceeded to pitch a 7-inning one hitter! Unbelievable!
Cunningham has seemingly been Drohan’s top non-Mason option out of the bullpen over the past month, despite having numbers that did not instill confidence. Still, a few of her stats separated her from the other possibilities. For one, she has a much better K/BB ratio than any other pitcher besides Mason (even if it is a small sample size). The other is almost an intangible. She has managed to get some “get us out of the inning” double plays that, momentarily, prevented disaster.
Going back to her freshman year and the first half of her sophomore season, Cunningham seemed to generally get decent results. It was a bad stretch beginning the latter half of last year from which she never seemed to recover. Well, today was the recovery, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for a team that is desperately trying to find a way to the postseason.
But the reason why today was NU’s best game of the year is because it was filled with heroes. Avvisato and Donahey had monster games. Donahey had ANOTHER 2 homer day. I believe, without looking, that this is her 3rd such game this year, and she is really going out strong in her senior season. The team also had to come back from the 1st inning 4-1 deficit, scoring in the 2nd and 3rd to tie it, going ahead, for good, in the 5th, and then breaking it open in the 6th and 7th. Meanwhile, during all of that, Cunningham held the potent Purdue lineup scoreless and almost hitless.
If there was an award for NU player of the game, it would have to be Cunningham. She deserves it, and she may have saved the season today.
Cunningham has seemingly been Drohan’s top non-Mason option out of the bullpen over the past month, despite having numbers that did not instill confidence. Still, a few of her stats separated her from the other possibilities. For one, she has a much better K/BB ratio than any other pitcher besides Mason (even if it is a small sample size). The other is almost an intangible. She has managed to get some “get us out of the inning” double plays that, momentarily, prevented disaster.
Going back to her freshman year and the first half of her sophomore season, Cunningham seemed to generally get decent results. It was a bad stretch beginning the latter half of last year from which she never seemed to recover. Well, today was the recovery, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for a team that is desperately trying to find a way to the postseason.
But the reason why today was NU’s best game of the year is because it was filled with heroes. Avvisato and Donahey had monster games. Donahey had ANOTHER 2 homer day. I believe, without looking, that this is her 3rd such game this year, and she is really going out strong in her senior season. The team also had to come back from the 1st inning 4-1 deficit, scoring in the 2nd and 3rd to tie it, going ahead, for good, in the 5th, and then breaking it open in the 6th and 7th. Meanwhile, during all of that, Cunningham held the potent Purdue lineup scoreless and almost hitless.
If there was an award for NU player of the game, it would have to be Cunningham. She deserves it, and she may have saved the season today.
Another tremendous game and win by the Cats, 1-0, today!
I would not have thought that today’s game could have topped yesterday’s, but somehow it might have. Given how the game played out perhaps the Cats should not be classified as the Cardiac Cats™ but simply the 7th inning Cats as that is when they came to life again.
After being shutout and held hitless all game, it took a 1-out single in the top of the 6th inning by true freshman Teagan McCue to break up the no-hitter. She was unable to score, but the offensive drought had finally been broken, and the Cats were able to fully breakthrough in the 7th. Back to back singles by Avvisato and Raye, a sacrifice, and then a walk to Donahey loaded the bases with one out, and Nader then was able to drive a ball into right field for a sacrifice fly that scored the Cats’ lone run of the game.
Mason, who herself had held Purdue scoreless and to only 3 hits through 6 innings, took to the mound needing 3 outs and got them comfortably, sandwiching a ground out between 2 strikeouts. In the end, it may have been her finest pitched game of the season. In 7 innings, she allowed just 3 hits, walked one, hit one batter, and struck out 11! A tremendous, big-time performance against a far more potent Purdue team than the Illinois team she no-hit earlier this season, and her 16th win of the season overall. Congratulations to her and the rest of the team for the impressive sweep this weekend and winning their 10th consecutive game!
I would not have thought that today’s game could have topped yesterday’s, but somehow it might have. Given how the game played out perhaps the Cats should not be classified as the Cardiac Cats™ but simply the 7th inning Cats as that is when they came to life again.
After being shutout and held hitless all game, it took a 1-out single in the top of the 6th inning by true freshman Teagan McCue to break up the no-hitter. She was unable to score, but the offensive drought had finally been broken, and the Cats were able to fully breakthrough in the 7th. Back to back singles by Avvisato and Raye, a sacrifice, and then a walk to Donahey loaded the bases with one out, and Nader then was able to drive a ball into right field for a sacrifice fly that scored the Cats’ lone run of the game.
Mason, who herself had held Purdue scoreless and to only 3 hits through 6 innings, took to the mound needing 3 outs and got them comfortably, sandwiching a ground out between 2 strikeouts. In the end, it may have been her finest pitched game of the season. In 7 innings, she allowed just 3 hits, walked one, hit one batter, and struck out 11! A tremendous, big-time performance against a far more potent Purdue team than the Illinois team she no-hit earlier this season, and her 16th win of the season overall. Congratulations to her and the rest of the team for the impressive sweep this weekend and winning their 10th consecutive game!
Long answer:
I still think they are on the wrong side of the bubble, but I think they can win their way in. A 13 game win streak and 30 wins overall before the Big 10 tourney (meaning a sweep of Minnesota this weekend) would be a good starting place. Any loss against Minnesota or a first game exit from the Big 10 tourney would probably be devastating. Winning 2 games in the Big 10 tourney, with at least one of them against a tournament-bound team, would probably do it.
The pitching depth beyond Mason, however, makes a deep tourney run difficult. Do you start her in a possible first game against a Maryland-type of team (because if you lose, you're out), or do you try to hold her for 2 consecutive games against better opponents? Cunningham was tremendous Saturday, but it was her first performance of that kind since last season, so it's hard to know if you might get that again if you use her as a starter. If you start Mason in the first 2 games of the tourney, who will start a potential 3rd against a heavyweight team like UCLA or Nebraska?
The main problem NU has is quality wins. They don't get at many points as they would normally for their strength of schedule because they didn't win any games in the early part of the season against tournament-bound teams, save for wins over mid-majors Texas St and Boston Univ. Their only other significant win is the one win in conference play against Oregon. After the big 4 at the top of the conference (all the fake Big 10 teams), Indiana seems to be solidly in even though their top wins are not all that more impressive than NU (USF, Loyola-Chi, and 2x UNC-Greensboro). The question is how many more Big 10 teams, beyond those 5, will get in?
Michigan, Wisconsin, and Purdue are in the mix but, of that group, only Wisconsin can finish with an above .500 conference record. They finish with 3 at home aganist Rutgers, so they have a good chance of sweeping. If they will do, they will probably be in. Purdue has one win over Oregon too, but that's about it for good wins. They finish on the road vs. Iowa and probably need a sweep so they have their work cut out for them. Michigan may have more substantial victories than NU with wins over Kansas, USF, and Arizona St, and, of course, they beat NU 2 out of 3 head-to-head (which includes the horrific game NU blew leading 9-0), but they will finish with a losing conference record. They probably need to win some games in the Big 10 tourney, otherwise I think NU could overtake them for the last spot coming out of the Big 10. Possible head to head matchups in the Big 10 tourney may say a lot to which of these teams makes it.
Short answer: Just win, baby! If you win, you're in!
Cats win today over Minnesota, 5-1! Complete game victory for Mason, #17. Line: 2 hits, no earned runs, 4K’s, and 4 walks. 122 pitches total, so not quite as clean as some previous games. 3 runs scored by the Cats in the 5th provided the cushion.
28-19 overall now, just 0.04 points below a .600 winning %. Still need to win both remaining games this weekend to push win total to 30 and win streak to 13. That makes tomorrow the game of the season because who starts? Grudzielanek has been getting the non-Mason starts, but her troubles in her last start (no outs recorded) suggest Cunningham might be tried as a starter. Drohan may have tipped her hand a bit as Grudzielanek appeared in the game as a pinch hitter, something she hasn’t done since early in the season. Either way, the offense needs to be ready to help.
Keep it going!
28-19 overall now, just 0.04 points below a .600 winning %. Still need to win both remaining games this weekend to push win total to 30 and win streak to 13. That makes tomorrow the game of the season because who starts? Grudzielanek has been getting the non-Mason starts, but her troubles in her last start (no outs recorded) suggest Cunningham might be tried as a starter. Drohan may have tipped her hand a bit as Grudzielanek appeared in the game as a pinch hitter, something she hasn’t done since early in the season. Either way, the offense needs to be ready to help.
Keep it going!
Cats fall 3-2 tonight to Minnesota in a defeat that, if not crushing, is very disappointing. Disappointing because it shows how hard it is to run a win streak past 10 games, regardless of who you play. Disappointing because it happened on Senior Night where you are honoring 4 departing senior STARTERS leaving at the end of the season. And disappointing because you now have lost the easier path to the postseason.
The crushing part, however, comes into play even before the game began. That question was who would start tonight’s game. And, given the answer, I am open to wonder if it was even a question at all for Drohan. She went with the most conservative choice (of sorts). She chose not to rock the boat and to keep the routine of who starts the games between Mason that has existed since the Michigan series. Yet the choice to start Grudzielanek has not been a particularly good one. Grudzielanek last won a game on March 21st, vs. Illinois, and in her last 2 starts, including tonight’s, she has failed to retire one batter before being removed.
Last week, Renae Cunningham stepped up and gave the Cats 7 huge innings vs. Purdue, holding Purdue scoreless while the Cats came back to win from a 4-1 deficit. That performance may well have been an outlier, and there was no guarantee she could duplicate anything close to that again, but I thought she warranted the chance on merit. When I saw Grudzielanek listed as tonight’s starter though, I couldn’t even be sure that Cunningham was available. Injuries, and player availability, are cloaked in such mystery in college sports today, and I have no inside connections to glean such information from.
However, after Grudzielanek was lifted in the first inning, Dohse came in and more or less duplicated what Cunningham did last week. She found that Texas St magic again and went 7 innings, giving up 2 hits, 2 walks, and struck out 7. This was all done while the game was still “in reach”, so no garbage time stat padding was occurring. Unfortunately, despite a late 2-run home run from Raye, the Cats couldn’t come back this week. Giving up 3 free runs in the 1st proved to be too much. But 2 weeks in a row, the reliever, coming in for the starter, pitched 7 scoreless innings. Perhaps Drohan needs to consider someone else for that non-Mason start upcoming (hopefully).
And I say hopefully, because assuming we win tomorrow, we’ll be at 29 wins, and now will probably need to win 2 games in the Big 10 tourney. Indiana should be in, but Wisconsin, NU, and Michigan (who is charging hard and may hold a tie-breaker over NU if it comes down to 1 spot), are all still in the mix. Purdue could also still make it, so NU will have to win some consecutive games next week and probably against teams far better than Minnesota and Illinois. We need Mason, but we’re going to need someone else as a pitcher too.
The crushing part, however, comes into play even before the game began. That question was who would start tonight’s game. And, given the answer, I am open to wonder if it was even a question at all for Drohan. She went with the most conservative choice (of sorts). She chose not to rock the boat and to keep the routine of who starts the games between Mason that has existed since the Michigan series. Yet the choice to start Grudzielanek has not been a particularly good one. Grudzielanek last won a game on March 21st, vs. Illinois, and in her last 2 starts, including tonight’s, she has failed to retire one batter before being removed.
Last week, Renae Cunningham stepped up and gave the Cats 7 huge innings vs. Purdue, holding Purdue scoreless while the Cats came back to win from a 4-1 deficit. That performance may well have been an outlier, and there was no guarantee she could duplicate anything close to that again, but I thought she warranted the chance on merit. When I saw Grudzielanek listed as tonight’s starter though, I couldn’t even be sure that Cunningham was available. Injuries, and player availability, are cloaked in such mystery in college sports today, and I have no inside connections to glean such information from.
However, after Grudzielanek was lifted in the first inning, Dohse came in and more or less duplicated what Cunningham did last week. She found that Texas St magic again and went 7 innings, giving up 2 hits, 2 walks, and struck out 7. This was all done while the game was still “in reach”, so no garbage time stat padding was occurring. Unfortunately, despite a late 2-run home run from Raye, the Cats couldn’t come back this week. Giving up 3 free runs in the 1st proved to be too much. But 2 weeks in a row, the reliever, coming in for the starter, pitched 7 scoreless innings. Perhaps Drohan needs to consider someone else for that non-Mason start upcoming (hopefully).
And I say hopefully, because assuming we win tomorrow, we’ll be at 29 wins, and now will probably need to win 2 games in the Big 10 tourney. Indiana should be in, but Wisconsin, NU, and Michigan (who is charging hard and may hold a tie-breaker over NU if it comes down to 1 spot), are all still in the mix. Purdue could also still make it, so NU will have to win some consecutive games next week and probably against teams far better than Minnesota and Illinois. We need Mason, but we’re going to need someone else as a pitcher too.
Cats outlast Minnesota, 6-0, breaking open a scoreless game with 6 runs in the 6th inning. Before that, it was dual, and dueling, no-hitters through 5 innings. Mason allowed her first hit of the game in the 6th, a double, and had to work out of a bit of trouble after walking another batter before getting the 3rd out of the inning.
In the bottom of the 6th, it was Avvisato who had the Cats' first hit of the game, a single. She drove in Renschen, pinch running for McCue, who had led off the inning with a walk. Credit must go to McCue again. Last weekend vs. Purdue she broke up a no-hit bid in the 6th inning. Even though that didn’t lead to a score, the Cats did manage to push the winning run across in the next inning. Today, her walk led to Renschen being sacrificed to 2nd, then scoring on Avvisato’s single. After that single, the floodgates opened, and the Cats clustered 4 more 2-out hits around a walk which led to 5 more runs scoring.
Mason sailed through the 7th with one more K and ended up with 12 on the game. She gave up the lone hit, allowed 3 walks, and improved her record to 18-8. In monitoring potential fatigue, she threw 114 pitches today, 8 less than on Friday. Wouldn’t it be something if she could get to 20 wins on the season! If the Cats want to make the postseason, they may need her to.
It’s too bad that probably no one outside of NU fans is really noticing what Mason is doing this season. National softball chatter is pretty much 80% about Oklahoma and the remaining 20% mostly swings between blue blood teams like Texas, UCLA, and Alabama. While I’m biased, the focus on so few teams is detrimental to the sport.
In scoreboard watching, Wisconsin, surprisingly, was blasted by Rutgers today (run-ruled!) which probably puts them behind NU in the fight for a postseason spot. Purdue, Michigan, and Indiana all won. Michigan is going to be a problem for NU if they can make a run in the Big 10 tourney as the head to head series win over NU could push NU out of a spot. Fortunately, their conference record is below .500. Hopefully, the Cats can keep the bats going in the tourney as they were no-hit for 5 innings by a Minnesota pitcher that came into today’s game with an ERA over 6 and a WHIP of 2.00. They will see better pitchers later this week.
In the bottom of the 6th, it was Avvisato who had the Cats' first hit of the game, a single. She drove in Renschen, pinch running for McCue, who had led off the inning with a walk. Credit must go to McCue again. Last weekend vs. Purdue she broke up a no-hit bid in the 6th inning. Even though that didn’t lead to a score, the Cats did manage to push the winning run across in the next inning. Today, her walk led to Renschen being sacrificed to 2nd, then scoring on Avvisato’s single. After that single, the floodgates opened, and the Cats clustered 4 more 2-out hits around a walk which led to 5 more runs scoring.
Mason sailed through the 7th with one more K and ended up with 12 on the game. She gave up the lone hit, allowed 3 walks, and improved her record to 18-8. In monitoring potential fatigue, she threw 114 pitches today, 8 less than on Friday. Wouldn’t it be something if she could get to 20 wins on the season! If the Cats want to make the postseason, they may need her to.
It’s too bad that probably no one outside of NU fans is really noticing what Mason is doing this season. National softball chatter is pretty much 80% about Oklahoma and the remaining 20% mostly swings between blue blood teams like Texas, UCLA, and Alabama. While I’m biased, the focus on so few teams is detrimental to the sport.
In scoreboard watching, Wisconsin, surprisingly, was blasted by Rutgers today (run-ruled!) which probably puts them behind NU in the fight for a postseason spot. Purdue, Michigan, and Indiana all won. Michigan is going to be a problem for NU if they can make a run in the Big 10 tourney as the head to head series win over NU could push NU out of a spot. Fortunately, their conference record is below .500. Hopefully, the Cats can keep the bats going in the tourney as they were no-hit for 5 innings by a Minnesota pitcher that came into today’s game with an ERA over 6 and a WHIP of 2.00. They will see better pitchers later this week.
Tournament Bracket
The Big 10 Softball Tournament bracket was released tonight:
https://bigten.org/sb/article/59966/
NU opens with Penn State on May 6th @ 7PM and, if they win, would face UCLA in the 2nd game on May 7th. Not a particularly good match up as UCLA’s offense is elite and close to unstoppable, but their pitching is shaky. Like NU, they have only one pitcher with elite numbers, Taylor Tinsley. Behind her, the pitchers have great records and terrible stat lines. The number 2 pitcher has an ERA above 6 and WHIP above 2 but has a 9-1 record.
That loss yesterday to Minnesota looks huge in how it affected NU’s tournament draw. If they had won, NU would have been seeded ahead of Washington as the 5 seed which would have put them in line for a 2nd game against the 4th seed, Indiana. Indiana’s record is excellent at 41-13, but that would have been a much easier game than UCLA (or Nebraska or Oregon). The “what-ifs” in going back to who may have been available or the best choice to start yesterday’s game…
NU probably needs to win 2 to get to the postseason. That would give them a 2nd high quality win for the year (beating UCLA) and would leave them with a record of no worse than 31-21 for the season. Purdue plays Wisconsin, so the loser of that game will likely be out of the running for a tournament spot. Michigan plays Ohio St and would be favored in that game, but then would get Nebraska. 2 wins and they are in, but it will be dicey for them with only one. If most of these Big 10 bubble teams fail to make it, one of the winners will probably be the SEC. The SEC is certain to put 11 (out of 15) teams in already, but Missouri and Ole Miss are on the bubble and could bring the total number of SEC teams to 13!
Hold on to your softballs… it’s tournament week!
The Big 10 Softball Tournament bracket was released tonight:
https://bigten.org/sb/article/59966/
NU opens with Penn State on May 6th @ 7PM and, if they win, would face UCLA in the 2nd game on May 7th. Not a particularly good match up as UCLA’s offense is elite and close to unstoppable, but their pitching is shaky. Like NU, they have only one pitcher with elite numbers, Taylor Tinsley. Behind her, the pitchers have great records and terrible stat lines. The number 2 pitcher has an ERA above 6 and WHIP above 2 but has a 9-1 record.
That loss yesterday to Minnesota looks huge in how it affected NU’s tournament draw. If they had won, NU would have been seeded ahead of Washington as the 5 seed which would have put them in line for a 2nd game against the 4th seed, Indiana. Indiana’s record is excellent at 41-13, but that would have been a much easier game than UCLA (or Nebraska or Oregon). The “what-ifs” in going back to who may have been available or the best choice to start yesterday’s game…
NU probably needs to win 2 to get to the postseason. That would give them a 2nd high quality win for the year (beating UCLA) and would leave them with a record of no worse than 31-21 for the season. Purdue plays Wisconsin, so the loser of that game will likely be out of the running for a tournament spot. Michigan plays Ohio St and would be favored in that game, but then would get Nebraska. 2 wins and they are in, but it will be dicey for them with only one. If most of these Big 10 bubble teams fail to make it, one of the winners will probably be the SEC. The SEC is certain to put 11 (out of 15) teams in already, but Missouri and Ole Miss are on the bubble and could bring the total number of SEC teams to 13!
Hold on to your softballs… it’s tournament week!