No. 12 Northwestern Faces No. 1 Alabama, No. 23 DePaul Tuesday at DePaul Invitational
April 28, 2008
Northwestern's DePaul Invitational Game Notes (PDF Format)
EVANSTON, Ill. -- No. 12 Northwestern will make the short drive down to the Lincoln Park neighborhood this Tuesday, April 29, for one of the most exciting softball events to hit Chicagoland in recent years, playing No. 1 Alabama and No. 23 DePaul in the one-day DePaul Invitational at Cacciatore Stadium. The Wildcats and Crimson Tide will meet at 1 p.m. CT Tuesday before Alabama and DePaul square off at 3 p.m. The 'Cats and Blue Demons then will play at 5 p.m. The field is directly off the Fullerton stop on the Red Line of the `El.' Alabama's visit to Chicago marks a rare late-season trip north by a Southern team, and also is the first time a nonconference No. 1 has hit the city limits in such a manner. Each of the three teams in Tuesday's field have appeared at the Women's College World Series twice in the last three years, effectively bringing Oklahoma City softball to Chicagoland fans. Northwestern and Alabama most recently met in a classic opening-round game at the 2006 WCWS, with the Wildcats getting a dramatic, game-tying, final-strike home run by current junior Erin Dyer (Homer Glen, Ill./Lockport) in the bottom of the seventh to send the game into extra innings, where NU eventually prevailed, 6-5, in the 10th. The last time Northwestern faced the nation's No. 1-ranked team according to the NFCA coaches poll was back on Feb. 16 when NU powered its way to an 8-5 victory over Arizona. The Wildcats are 4-2 against teams ranked in the top-10 in the nation in 2008, and have a 7-5 mark against NFCA ranked teams overall. The Wildcats have won their last four meetings with the Blue Demons dating back to 2006, but before that DePaul swept NU in a 2005 NCAA Super Regional to earn a trip to the World Series. Both NU and DePaul qualified for the 2007 WCWS field. After Tuesday's festivities, NU returns home for its final Big Ten series of the year, taking on Michigan State Saturday and Sunday on the Big Ten Network at Sharon J. Drysdale Field. Saturday is Northwestern's second-annual PURPLE AUCTION following the game, while the Wildcats will honor senior Darcy Sengewald (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) on Sunday.
The Broadcasts
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