By Cici Rindy
Madison is gaining another women’s sports team for fans to cheer on. The Madison Night Mares, a new collegiate softball team, is kicking off their inaugural season this summer.
The Night Mares are part of The Northwoods League (which the Madison Mallards belong to) and share the Mallards’ iconic north side stadium, The Duck Pond. The league had long wanted to bring women’s collegiate softball to Madison over the summer, and with the support of Mallards’ general manager, Samantha Rubin, and president, Vern Stenman, the idea came to life.
Prior to joining the Night Mares, head coach Aaron Moore was the women’s assistant softball coach at Trinity University. Moore also served as head women’s softball coach at Roosevelt University and Morton College.
“Madison has a great softball culture and has experienced success at the collegiate level. The fans are very supportive of the Wisconsin Badgers, and it’ll be exciting to see those fans come out and support these women here,” says Moore.
The team’s roster is packed with 16 talented collegiate players, some of which hail from UW–Madison, UW– Parkside and Madison College.
The team announced their name and logo at an event at The Orpheum Theater last April. The logo has nods to Madison, including five lines on the mare’s wings, representing the region’s five lakes.
The Night Mares’ inaugural season kicked off at The Duck Pond on June 16. Games are scattered throughout July, with their last home game of the season on Aug. 6.
