Kate Drohan

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Contents

[edit] Basic Information

  • Title: Northwestern Softball Head Coach
  • Career Record (as of 2006): 186-90-1
  • Alma Mater: Providence College, 1995
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree (Providence '95), Biology
  • Coaching Experience: Boston College, 1995–97 Assistant Coach, Northwestern University, 1998–2000 Assistant Coach, Northwestern University, 2001 Associate head Coach, Northwestern University, 2002–present Head Coach
  • Playing Experience: Providence College, 1992–95 All-Big east, 1992, 94, 95

[edit] Accolades

  • 2006 Speedline/National Fastpitch Coaches Association Coaching Staff of the Year
  • 1 Big Ten Title
  • 2 Women's College World Series Appearances
  • 6 All-Americans
  • 3 Big Ten Freshman of the Year awards
  • 3 Big Ten Player of the Year awards
  • 2 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year accolades

[edit] About

Kate Drohan now is in her sixth year at the helm of the Northwestern Softball program after serving under legendary head coach Sharon Drysdale for four seasons. The 'Cats have improved in each successive season under Drohan, and now rate among the best programs in the country. After five seasons, Drohan's career record of 186-90-1 gives her a .674 winning percentage -- ranking her 24th in winning percentage among active Division I head coaches with a minimum of five years at the DI level. In 2006, Northwestern won its first Big Ten title since 1987 and qualified for the Women's College World Series for the first time in 20 years. In Oklahoma City, the Wildcats made an exciting and perfect 3-0 run through bracket play to the championship series. NU's finish at the WCWS and in the polls -- No. 2 -- both marked program bests. The 'Cats also reached the 50-win plateau for the first time in school history. Drohan cemented her status as one of the best coaches in Big Ten history, joining legends Drysdale, Carol Hutchins (Michigan) and Gayle Blevins (Indiana/Iowa) as the only coaches to ever take Big Ten schools to the WCWS. Drohan and Hutchins are the only two to make the final pairing. A program-record five Wildcats earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2006, and NU made a clean sweep of the conference's postseason awards. Garland Cooper earned her second-consecutive Player of the Year honor, Eileen Canney was tabbed as Pitcher of the Year, Tammy Williams earned Freshman of the Year accolades and Drohan was named Coach of the Year for the second time. Drohan and her staff earned NFCA/Speedline National Coaching Staff of the Year honors following the 2006 season. In the last two years (2005-06), five different Wildcats have earned All-America honors -- including a pair of freshmen. Drohan coached NU to its third-straight NCAA appearance in 2005, advancing to Super Regional play after winning the Ninth Regional hosted by South Bend. Four Wildcats landed first-team All-Big Ten honors, at the time tied for the most in NU history. The Wildcats won 42 games, one shy of the school record, and rose to a ranking of 15th in both national polls -- the highest rankings NU had reached at the time. After the record-setting season, Drohan and her staff were named the NFCA's Mideast Region Co-Coaching Staff of the Year. In 2003, Drohan led the Wildcats to a 36-19 record and Northwestern's sixth-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament and first since 2000. The 36 wins were the fifth-most in school history and the most since 1995. NU won 12 of its final 17 regular season games and advanced to the Big Ten Championship Game as the sixth seed in the conference tournament. Drohan guided the `Cats to an at-large bid in the 2003 NCAA Tournament and a No. 2 seed in the Regional hosted in Austin, Texas. Northwestern won its first game of the tournament against Tennessee Tech, but bowed out of the tourney following its initial victory. NU finished the season with the 14th-ranked RPI in the country. The 2004 season saw even more impressive play from Northwestern. For the second consecutive season, Drohan led the 'Cats into the NCAA Tournament with a 34-20 record and a fourth-place finish in the Big Ten. The conference finish was NU's best in the Drohan era. Northwestern entered the 2004 NCAA Regional as a No. 3 seed in the toughest Region in the entire tournament. The 'Cats defeated UC-Santa Barbara and South Carolina before falling to No. 2 seed Oklahoma and 10th-ranked Louisiana-Lafayette. NU's 2-2 record was its best in the NCAA Tourney since 2000. Since joining the staff in 1998, Drohan has coached 19 National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Mideast Region selections, five NFCA All-America Scholar Athletes, five CoSIDA Academic All-District selection and 25 All-Big Ten honorees. In 2003, the Wildcats earned a school-record eight All-Big Ten awards. Drohan has also proven to be one of the top recruiters in the country, bringing the best and the brightest to Evanston. Among those recruits have been 2004 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Eileen Canney, 2005 and 2006 Big Ten Player of the Year Garland Cooper and 2006 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Tammy Williams. The Wildcats also put together three 30-plus seasons following her arrival, highlighted by an NCAA Regional appearance in 2000. In 2003, NU senior Carri Leto was one of 45 players and the only Big Ten student-athlete to earn a tryout with the U.S. National Team. After the 2000 season, Drohan was promoted to associate head coach and took on further responsibilities within the program. In early 2001, Drysdale informed the administration that she would step down as head coach at the end of the spring. Shortly after that announcement, Athletic Director Rick Taylor announced that Drohan would become NU's head softball coach.

[edit] Background

Drohan came to Evanston from Boston College, where she had served as an assistant coach for the Eagles for two seasons. There she served as assistant softball coach and assistant athletic director for facilities from 1995-97. In addition to her duties with the softball team, Drohan worked game operations and administration with the Eagles. She also directed the YES Clinic at the 1996 NCAA Field Hockey Championships hosted by Boston College. Drohan also has been a guest lecturer at the Hofstra University Softball Camp and the Providence College Baseball Camp. Drohan earned her bachelor's degree in biology from Providence in May of 1995. As a member of the Providence softball team, she was named to the All-Big East team in 1992, 1994 and 1995.

[edit] On Northwestern Softball

"I believe strongly in the philosophy of Northwestern University and the vision of our softball program. Northwestern softball offers an environment which challenges you to excel as a student, as an athlete, as a teammate and as an individual. At Northwestern, you are surrounded by people who understand what it means to be truly committed. There are no limits to how far the student-athlete can go. The unique experience of Northwestern University is second to none."

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