Heading into a weekend at the St. Pete Clearwater Elite Invitational, the task ahead of the Northwestern Wildcats was undoubtedly a tough one.
Faced with four matchups against Power Five opponents — three of which were ranked, including then No. 3 UCLA, last season’s national runner-up — in the span of just three days, the ‘Cats were set to be tested in a way they hadn’t in the regular season since the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Despite falling late in their final bout of the invitational, most would still say that they passed their trial with flying colors, winning three of the games including an extra-innings affair with the highly-regarded Bruins.