This is NOT a prediction — unless we get everything right.
With the Big Ten regular season complete and conference awards set to be announced Wednesday, it’s time to see which Wildcats have the best shot at collecting some hardware. Here are our picks for the Big Ten’s most prestigious honors:
Big Ten Coach of the Year
Making the case for Kate Drohan: Despite Northwestern’s recent success in the Big Ten, Northwestern entered 2024 with major uncertainties, and few picked the ‘Cats to repeat as conference champs. Danielle Williams, Jordyn Rudd, Skyler Shellmyer, Nikki Cuchran and Maeve Nelson took a whopping 1,089 career starts out the door with them, leaving Drohan with one of the youngest rosters in the Big Ten.
With eight true first-years, Drohan assembled a lineup that saw six of the nine defensive spots turn over. Despite all that, Drohan and Co. collected the Big Ten regular season title with a 19-3 record, just a half-game shy of the 20-3 mark the team posted a season ago.
Northwestern’s staff also deserves tons of credit for recognizing and recruiting Ashley Miller in the transfer portal, who may just be the Big Ten Pitcher of the Year (more on that later). Under the guidance of Drohan and Michelle Gascoigne, Miller improved from a 5.43 ERA with Michigan State in 2023 to a 1.34 mark with the ‘Cats. Drohan’s recruiting, leadership and in-game strategy gave the Wildcats an advantage regardless of their opponent.
Our final ballot:
- Kate Drohan, Northwestern
- Bonnie Tholl, Michigan
- Kristen Butler, Rutgers
Although both Tholl and Butler had more drastic year-to-year improvements (eight game conference bump for Michigan, five for Rutgers) that landed their respective teams second and third in the Big Ten standings, for all the reasons above, Kate Drohan deserves her third consecutive Coach of the Year and sixth overall. Northwestern winning each of its conference series is the cherry on top of an already impressive résumé.
Big Ten Player of the Year
Making the case for Kansas Robinson: With the fourth-highest batting average among qualified Big Ten batters, Robinson’s sophomore leap propelled her into the conversation as one of the best hitters in the Big Ten. Finishing the year batting .409 with 11 homers and 34 RBIs, Robinson dazzled from the leadoff spot, making opposing pitchers weary of her power and ability to get on base. The second baseman’s 1.320 OPS in conference play simply sums up how dominant she was, batting for power while finding ways to get aboard. At one point deep into the season, Robinson’s average hit the .500 mark — a ludicrous accomplishment.
Any argument for Robinson in this award starts with the fact that she was the best player on the best team in the conference. Northwestern would not be the top seed in the Big Ten Tournament without Robinson’s herculean effort. Not to mention, Robinson bat leadoff for the ‘Cats. It’s easy to imagine her stats could be even more eye-popping had she been hitting slightly lower in the order. And of course, a large reason that Robinson’s counting stats are lower than her Big Ten peers is simply due to Northwestern losing several games to weather cancellations. She played double-digit games less than players on Indiana, Rutgers and Michigan.
Our final ballot:
- Jess Oakland, Minnesota
- Morgan Smith, Rutgers
- Kansas Robinson, Northwestern
The only Big Ten softball player named a Top 26 Finalist for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award, Oakland is the runaway favorite for this award. The Big Ten’s leader in home runs, batting average, on base percentage and slugging, the sophomore racked up 14 multi-hit games in Big Ten play to lead the Golden Gophers to a 13-10 finish in conference play.
Smith’s ability to swing for the fences and rack up RBIs has her making a valiant effort to catch Oakland. The Scarlet Knights’ slugger hit a conference-best 19 homers and 66 RBIs while maintaining a .412 batting average and .485 on base percentage. Oakland’s advantages in almost every statistic besides homers and RBIs compared to Smith has Rutgers’ biggest offensive threat finishing as a runner-up.
A slump (although a slump for Robinson is an average stretch for most players) in batting average, power and on base percentage over the last month of the season likely has Northwestern’s Robinson finishing behind Oakland and Smith for this award. But we expect the sophomore to be a perennial contender for this honor in future seasons.
Big Ten Pitcher of the Year
Making the case for Ashley Miller: Aside from a handful of walks at the end of the season that inflated her numbers, the only knock on Miller’s résumé is her innings pitched total, which much like Robinson, is damaged by Northwestern simply playing less games, at no fault of Miller’s. Almost everything else, as the chart below depicts, comes up Ashley Miller.
In her final season of eligibility, the Michigan State transfer posted career highs in ERA, wins, complete games and batting average against. She was the engine for a Northwestern team that won the Big Ten and allowed just 2.72 runs per game over the course of the season, which was best in the league by a significant margin. Not to mention, three of Miller’s four credited losses came in early-season matchups where the Wildcats lost by a final score of 1-0. Her lethal drop ball may just be the singular best pitch any Big Ten pitcher has in their arsenal. Any time Miller was in the circle, the ‘Cats had a great chance to win.
Our final ballot:
- Ashley Miller, Northwestern
- Bridget Nemeth, Penn State
- Lauren Derkowski, Michigan
Referencing the table above, it’s clear how talented these three pitchers were, but with sizable advantages in key statistics that measure effectiveness and efficiency like batting average against, strikeouts per seven innings and ERA, Miller should be the favorite for this award.
With Miller’s rocky end to the season however, the door is cracked open for Nemeth, who excelled in her first season in Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions’ ace hurled a conference-leading 183 innings, winning a conference-best 22 games while also only allowing 1.5 walks per seven innings pitched — tied for the Big Ten lead among pitchers with over 100 innings of work. She also finished second in the conference in total strikeouts, and zooming out at her entire resume, put together the second-best season among Big Ten pitchers in terms of statistics and impact on winning. Lauren Derkowski similarly racked up impressive stats, but more impressively, was the ace that led the conference’s second best team and second best pitching staff.
Big Ten Freshman of the Year
Making the case for Emma Raye: Raye’s threat as a two-way menace has her as a dark-horse candidate for this award. The reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week, Raye’s power surge in conference play established herself as one of the conference’s best young power hitting threats. Powered by three homers in her last four games of the season, the first-year catcher led all freshmen with seven home runs in conference play, including tying Robinson with seven blasts against Big Ten opposition. Northwestern’s catcher finished the season batting .232 with 10 home runs and 29 RBIs.
Defensively, Raye showcased her plus-plus arm, hosing down baserunners left, right and center. Her 12 runners caught stealing ranked tied-for-third among all Big Ten catchers, while her ability to keep the ball in front of her propelled Miller’s success in the circle. The first-year helped erase three base runners (two caught stealing) in a single game against Illinois earlier this season, tossing two more aside last weekend against Indiana.
Our final ballot:
- Bridget Nemeth, Penn State
- Ella Stephenson, Michigan
- Jena Young, Iowa
Regardless of age, Nemeth was in the conversation for the conference’s best pitchers. Without any consistently elite freshman hitters in the Big Ten this season, you can write Nemeth’s name in sharpie next to the freshman of the year award.
Stephenson’s rise in conference play has her finishing second behind Nemeth. The four-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week only batted .276 with a .327 on base percentage, but in conference play bumped those numbers to a .382 batting average and .420 on base percentage. Throw in three home runs and 34 RBIs on the season and the future is bright for Stephenson after a superb freshman campaign.
Meanwhile, Iowa’s Jena Young finished the regular season batting .373 with a .455 on base percentage, racking up nine multi-hit Big Ten games while only striking out twice in conference play.
Despite Raye’s stellar first season in Evanston, we decided she falls a tier below this podium due to a lower overall average and 28 strikeouts on the season.
Our First-Team All Big Ten Team
The Big Ten’s official first-team features a list of over a dozen players, but for the sake of the exercise, we decided to choose just one player at each position:
Pitcher: Ashley Miller, Northwestern
Catcher: Taylor Krapf, Minnesota
First Base: Keke Tholl, Michigan
Second Base: Kansas Robinson, Northwestern
Third Base: Maddie Erickson, Michigan
Shortstop: Jess Oakland, Minnesota
Outfield: Morgan Smith, Rutgers
Outfield: Taylor Minnick, Indiana
Outfield: Jaeda McFarland, Maryland
Designated Player: Billie Andrews, Nebraska
Where Northwestern could pick up additional awards:
Wildcats in the running for First Team All-Big Ten: Ashley Miller, Kelsey Nader, Kansas Robinson
Wildcats in the running for Second Team All-Big Ten: Kelsey Nader, Angela Zedak
Wildcats in the running for All-Freshman Team: Renae Cunningham, Ainsley Muno, Emma Raye
Wildcats in the running for All-Defensive Team: Bridget Donahey, Ayana Lindsey, Kelsey Nader, Emma Raye