Everything to know about Kate Drohan’s incoming first-years

2026 will be an interesting year at The J.

Kate Drohan is entering her 25th season at the helm of Northwestern softball. Throughout her time with the program, strong recruiting classes have become the norm. This year is no different.

To say next year will be pivotal is an understatement. Kansas Robinson, Grace Nieto, Bridget Donahey, and Kelsey Nader are all on their final year of eligibility, and the offensive powerhouse that Northwestern currently has will soon be disbanded and will be difficult to parallel.

But instead of dreading the future, let’s look to what’s exciting ‘Cats fans right now: Kate Drohan’s incoming class.

Here are five names to keep tabs on heading into next season.

Kate Renschen | OF | Lake Central

The marquee addition to the Northwestern lineup, Renschen comes to Evanston following a storied high school career.

Renschen is a four-time sectional champion, 2024 Duneland Athletic Conference MVP, and owner of the single-season hits and stolen base records, shattering both in her junior season.

After a freshman year where she saw limited playing time on the varsity team, Renschen broke out in her sophomore year with the Indians, batting an even .500 with 12 extra-base hits and 28 runs batted in. Utterly dominant at the plate.

So dominant that she finished her career with more triples (14) than strikeouts (13).

Just as she raved about Nieto’s toughness in the box years ago, Drohan raved about the same tenacity she sees in Renschen’s approach in the batter’s box.

After a brutal end to her high school career where she and her team fell to the Crown Point Bulldogs in the IHSAA Class 4 State Championship, the highly motivated recruit will likely make an immediate impact in purple and white.

Marina Mason | P | Brentwood

A Class 4A All-State honoree, Mason finishes high school with a career 1.55 ERA, with her opponents batting just .174 against her. Her senior year numbers were the best of her career — an 18-5 record, a 1.09 ERA, fanning 339 batters in 162 innings of work.

Mason’s signature performance this year came in the season opener against Summit, where she struck out 16 to help Brentwood High School to a 5-4 victory. She attributes a lot of her success to her changeup, as noted by Charlie Bateman in the Williamson Herald.

This same season, Mason set Brentwood’s single-game strikeout record with 24.

In Mason’s final career start, she delivered in a 19-strikeout performance to power her Bruins to a 1-0 victory over Independence. Her stellar senior year earned her the Willco Award for high school softball, an honor given to some of the best high school athletes in Williamson County.

Tru Medina | UTL | Glenbard North

One big question is where Medina will find herself on the field in 2026. With two shortstops in the starting lineup (Donahey and Kaylie Avvisato), the switch-hitting power bat may very well slot in as the DP next season.

Medina rides the momentum of a .558 average in 25 games during her senior year into her collegiate softball career. The Illinois native’s jersey number (34) matches the number of extra base hits she accumulated, with nearly half of those leaving the park for homers.

Glenbard North head coach Josh Sanew called Medina “the best shortstop in the state”. Sanew and Medina led the Panthers to a 21-6 record, going 10-4 to finish at the top of their conference. The All-Area captain joins a lineup stacked with speed and power.

Teagan McCue | IF | Bishop McNamara

A four-time All-Area selection, McCue comes in as a reliable glove for an infield that looked shaky at times this past season. The Bourbonnais, Illinois native made just two errors in 98 chances at shortstop.

Don’t get it twisted, McCue can swing it as well. She logged 55 hits for the Irish in 2025, slugging .958 on the year. Her OPS eclipsed the 1.400 mark from her sophomore year on at Bishop McNamara.

McCue is a huge addition that the Drohans can use to enhance stability in their lineup. We’ve seen NU find itself in limbo, as Avvisato and Donahey struggled in their respective positions throughout the year. A solution that was briefly explored last season was to move Donahey back to her original position at short, which Avvisato occupied, moving the then first-year to the DP spot.

The issue then became the position of third base and who was most qualified to man the hot corner. At times, Signe Dohse was the best option for the ‘Cats, as she got a couple of starts in the infield towards the tail end of the regular season.

If Northwestern ends up in the same situation, McCue can easily find herself competing for a starting job in the infield. If she gets the nod, NU would have itself a sure-handed athlete that stacks up against anyone in the box.

Kylee Jensen | C | Marengo

With the exit of Lauren Sciborski, in comes Kylee Jensen, the Kishwaukee River Conference Player of the Year, who seems to be the favorite to become Northwestern’s everyday catcher once Emma Raye’s Northwestern career is done.

That’s not to say Kate Drohan won’t give Jensen any opportunities in her first collegiate season. The Class 2A All-State elect is very familiar with the program, as Northwestern had a big pull in her recruiting process from the start — and for good reason.

NU is a breeding ground for great defensive catchers, including the aforementioned Raye and Jordyn Rudd just a few years ago. With a year of experience under the Drohans, it’s almost a certainty that Jensen will fall into that same category while providing some much-needed power in the middle of the order.

A year from now, Northwestern will lose a lot of crucial pieces. The question now becomes this: who will grow into the roles of the most prominent players in modern-day Northwestern softball?

It’ll be interesting to see which of these five answer the call.