The days of spring dominance have ended. NIU’s two-time defending Mid-American Conference champion softball team no longer controls the conference.

But senior pitcher Courtney Witvliet continues to strike out batters and play with the same competitive fire.

After NIU’s other top hurler, Christy Dalton, graduated last spring, much of the burden of carrying the team into MAC title contention fell upon Witvliet’s shoulders. A ferocious competitor, the 6-foot Witvliet had been a talented asset on an NIU team that went 41-7 in the MAC the last two seasons. But this spring everything changed.

With two freshmen pitchers joining the staff, Witvliet returned as the lone experienced hurler. She had to endure longer performances, as she has pitched a

team-leading 91.2 innings.

But Witvliet never complained or hung her head. If Witvliet felt any frustration, she never showed it. Even when NIU lost 11 of its first 12 games this spring, Witvliet continued to stay positive. Currently, she sports a 2.21 ERA and has 76 strikeouts in 91 innings.

“She’s always been a fighter,” catcher Samantha Knoll said. “I think she’s gotten more mentally tough. She’s always been able to bounce back.”

Witvliet accentuates that toughness each inning she pitches. When the Indiana native takes the mound, she puts up a shield no one can see through & not batters, opponents, coaches or even her own teammates.

“She doesn’t let anybody know what she’s thinking or how she’s feeling,” NIU coach Donna Martin said. “She’s the same & whether the kid hit a double or [Witvliet] struck her out. She’s got the same ‘to business’ kind of look.”

Witvliet won’t tell you if she feels sick. She won’t talk about her injuries. As far as the opponent knows, Witvliet always pitches at the top of her game. Teammate Gretchen Szymski said Witvliet’s game face even fools her.

“You never know,” Szymski said. “She will be sore and tired, but you can’t tell. She’s just that good.”

It typically takes a year or more for a young pitcher to learn to pitch at the Division I level. Witvliet began pitching at a high level from the beginning. As a freshman, she posted an 0.88 ERA while fanning 93 batters in 111 innings. The Indiana native combined speed with solid control to develop into one of the MAC’s top pitchers. This spring she has gone 55 straight innings without a walk. Last year, MAC coaches named her the conference’s Pitcher of the Year, as she struck out 131 batters in 146 innings while walking just 41. The right hander finished with a 17-5 record and 1.19 ERA. Should an opponent be lucky enough to get a hit off Witvliet, she will strike them out on the next at-bat.

“As a pitcher, I think you need to be very strong-minded,” Witvliet said. “To be able to go into a game knowing you’re going to beat the opponent & whether or not you do & you need to believe that you can.”

Her teammates and coaches have complete confidence in her, and almost always, Witvliet comes through. But the problem this season has been a question of whether NIU’s defense and hitting game will back her pitching. In a contest against Miami, she went six and a half innings without giving up a hit, striking out 11 batters, while walking none. But NIU failed to produce runs offensively and suffered a tough 1-0 loss.

“It’s usually us letting her down, not her letting us down,” Szymski said.

The Huskies (10-22 overall, 5-5 MAC West) struggled with its hitting, but last Sunday finally had the defense and timely hitting to back Witvliet’s pitching.

Knoll drilled a home run, and Witvliet struck out four batters. The Huskie defense also played solid, giving no unearned runs in handing MAC leader Ball State its first conference loss, 4-1. The Huskies believe if they continue to play as they did Sunday, NIU will return to the top of the conference. But they know they will always be able to count on Witvliet.

“It’s been hard on the whole team,” Knoll said. “For her personally, it’s her last year, and she really wants to do well. It’s been frustrating for her just knowing how good our team can be.”