Game Notes as a PDF

LEAGUE PLAY BEGINS
After 13 non-league games to open the 2011 season, the Southern Connecticut State University softball team kicks off Northeast-10 Conference play this week with three doubleheaders. The Owls host Assumption on Wednesday at 3 p.m. and Adelphi on Sunday with a twinbill at Pace in between on Saturday. SCSU also plays a non-league doubleheader at New York Tech on Thursday.

WHITLEY ON A ROLL
After finishing second in the Northeast-10 Conference last year with a .444 batting average, sophomore Kristin Whitley is at that same mark through the first 13 games of the 2011 season. She leads the Owls in that category as well as in RBI with 16.

ROSA HEATING UP
Junior Jessica Rosa ranks second on the club with a .395 batting average and in RBI with 14.

DOWNS PICKS UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF
Sophomore Alyssa Downs is third on the team with a .385 batting average and is third with 10 RBI.

WALK-OFF IN STYLE
The Owls showed great poise under pressure, winning three of their five games in walk-off or in extra inning fashion in Florida. Brittany Bucko registered a two run single to put the Owls up 4-3 against Philadelphia University in in the eighth, while the very next game Jessica Rosa knocked in Alyssa Downs with a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh against Caldwell College. The next day offered just as many late inning heroics for Kristin Whitley who doubled in the bottom half of the eighth to score Brittany Bucko and win by a final of 3-2.

MERCY RULE
The Owls used the softball mercy rule to make short work of the team from Bridgeport with a score of 9-1 in the fifth inning.

SEVEN IS THEIR LUCKY NUMBER?
The Owls are 3-0 when scoring seven or more runs against their opponent.

WHITLEY HAS THE POWER
Sophomore Kristin Whitley hit two homeruns and went 6-for-9 across two games against Dominican, while adding six RBI.

FIRST AND FOREMOST
The Owls were ranked No. 1 in the 2011 Northeast-10 Conference Preseason Poll.

42... AND THEN SOME
The 2010 campaign marked the best season in the history of the Southern Connecticut State University softball program. The Owls qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the past four years and collected a school record 42 victories.

IN THE NATIONAL POLLS
Southern Connecticut was among the programs receiving votes in the NFCA Division II national preseason poll of 2011. The Owls have since been in the others receiving votes category in each of the first five weeks of 2011.

A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
The Owls won their first Northeast-10 Conference Tournament title by sweeping through the 2010 event. In addition, Southern Connecticut also went on to record its first two NCAA Tournament victories in program history and reached the East Regional final.

TOURNAMENT TERRORS
Senior Megan Caporossi was named the 2010 Northeast-10 Conference Tournament's Most Valuable Player for her terrific play throughout the tournament. Fellow teammates Jayme Larson and freshman Kristin Whitley also joined Caporossi with a selection to the NE-10 All-Tournament Team.

EXCELLENCE IN THE CLASSROOM
Senior Khristle Lee and sophomore Brittany Hill were recognized for their performance in the classroom during the 2010 softball season. Both student-athletes were named as Division II Athletic Directors Association Academic Achievement Award winners. In addition, Lee was named to the Northeast-10 Conference Softball All-Academic Team for the second year in a row, and also collected Academic All-District honors from the College Sports Information Directors of America.

FIVE NAMED ALL-REGION
Five members of the Southern Connecticut State University softball team – seniors Megan Caporossi, Kerry Iacomini, and Khristle Lee and freshmen Brittany Bucko and Kristin Whitley were recognized with All-Region honors from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA). The Owls' five selections were the most from any school in the region.

SEVEN CAPTURE NORTHEAST-10 HONORS
Seven Owls earned Northeast-10 Conference laurels for their play during the 2010 campaign, Senior Khristle Lee earned All-Conference First-Team honors, while senior Kerry Iacomini and freshman Brittany Bucko were named to the All-Conference Second-Team and senior Megan Caporossi, sophomore Jayme Larson and freshman Kristin Whitley were selected to the All-Conference Third-Team. In addition, freshman Alyssa Downs, Bucko and Whitley were each named to the All-Conference Rookie Team.

ATOP THE NE-10
Throughout the regular season, the Owls' offense was atop the NE-10 in several statistical categories. Southern produced more runs (317), RBI (291), homeruns (40), doubles (80), triples (26) and total bases (679) than any other member in the conference. Furthermore, Southern manufactured a team-batting average of .331 and a team-slugging percentage of .526, both also good enough for first in the league.

HOME COOKIN
Southern Connecticut enjoyed its stay at home during the season, finishing 21-1 at Pelz Field. Offensively, the Owls accumulated a .375 batting average, 16 homeruns, 15 triples, 36 doubles, 167 runs scored and 152 RBI. In the circle, four different pitchers combined for 135 innings pitched coupled with a 1.77 ERA and 101 strikeouts.

LONG-BALL
Southern Connecticut utilized the long-ball in 2010, blasting 44 homeruns as a team. Megan Caporossi led the way with 12 homeruns, followed by a list of 10 other players. Brittany Bucko rounded the bases seven times, while Alyssa Pagano and Alyssa Downs each tallied six on the year.

LEAVING AN INDELIBLE MARK
A four-time All-Conference and three-time All-Region selection, Caporossi had another strong season at the plate in 2010. She batted .322 and led the league with 12 home runs and 59 runs batted She also scored 45 runs, good for fourth in the league, and was 19-for-20 in stolen bases, which ranked third in the conference. In addition, she accumulated a .633 slugging and a .358 on-base-percentage. Caporossi was also the Most Valuable Player of the NE-10 Tournament.

QUITE A FINALE FOR LEE
Khristle Lee had a fine senior season both on the field and in the classroom. She ranked third in the Northeast-10 in runs scored (46), fourth in hits (63) and seventh in triples (5). She was second on the squad with a .366 batting average and tallied 25 runs batted in.

A DYNAMIC DUO
The pair of freshmen Brittany Bucko and Kristin Whitley made an immediate impact in 2010. Bucko was asked to hold down the leadoff spot in their lineup all season. She led the league in runs scored (51), was second in triples (6), third in walks (25), sixth in total bases (94) and eighth in stolen bases (15). Bucko also accumulated a .351 batting average, 31 runs batted in and seven homeruns. Whitley, the 2010 Northeast-10 Conference batting champion runner-up (.444 average), Whitley led the team in that department. She was also second in the league in doubles (18), fourth in the league in hits (63) and on-base percentage (.494), fifth in slugging percentage (.662), sixth in total bases (94) and seventh in RBI (36).

THE COACH
Head Coach Lisa Barbaro finished her sixth year in the Owls' dugout. In her Southern Connecticut career, Barbaro has posted a record of 178-11-5, including an 111-58-3 mark in Northeast-10 Conference games.

ON DECK
The Owls are hosting two double headers against C.W. Post on Thursday at 2 p.m. and Georgian Court on Sunday at 1 p.m.