Mahoney Headlines Five Student-Athletes On All-MASCAC Softball Team
Buzzards Bay, MA --- Senior Michaella Mahoney has been honored as this years MASCAC Softball Player of the Year in a vote by the conferences eight head coaches. Mahoney also has been named to the All-MASCAC first team while juniors Lauren Besozzi, Erica Cordio and Ashley Howe and sophomore Kylene Pease all were selected to the second-team.
Buzzards Bay, MA --- Senior Michaella Mahoney (Shrewsbury, MA) has been honored as this years MASCAC Softball Player of the Year in a vote by the conferences eight head coaches. Mahoney also has been named to the All-MASCAC first team while juniors Lauren Besozzi (Milford, MA), Erica Cordio (Leominster, MA) and Ashley Howe (Winchendon, MA) and sophomore Kylene Pease (Ashland, MA) all were selected to the second-team.
Mahoney, a first-team pitcher, has been distinguished in each of the last two years as a second-team hurler.
Mahoney has helped carry the Lancers this season with a 13-2 mark with a 1.28 earned run average, 13 complete games, one save and five shutouts. Mahoney also has 104 strikeouts in 98.2 innings pitched. Mahoney is also handy with a bat as she leads the Lancers with a .430 batting average, six homers and 35 RBIs. 15 of Mahoney's 35 runs driven in have come with two outs.
Entering the week of the conference tournament, Mahoney leads the MASCAC in ERA, shutouts, RBIs and walks (24) while she is second in wins and runs scored (31), third in homers and strikeouts. Mahoney is also 21st in the NCAA Division III in on base percentage (.558).
Pease joins All-MASCAC team in her first season wearning a Lancer uniform after she transferred in last semester from Division II St. Anslem.
Pease led the MASCAC with a .406 average which included 43 hits, 36 of which were singles, to go along with six doubles 18 runs scored and 21 RBIs. Pease split time between the left field (23 games) and third-base (seven games) during conference doubleheaders. Her total base-knocks are tied for second in the conference standings while her slugging percentage is seventh (.487).
Pease hit a remarkable .380 average (19-for-50) with the bases empty and .357 with two men down (15-for-42). Pease also has 10 multi-hit games, three of which have included a trio of hits.
Besozzi is being distinguished with her first career conference honor as a second-team outfielder. Besozzi, a three-year starter in right field, is batting .322 with five doubles, 12 runs and 20 RBIs in the bottom of the order.
Besozzi has done most of her damage in MASCAC games as she has hit for a .417 clip with three doubles and 12 RBIs in 14 conference contests.
Howe recieves her first honor as a second-team catcher as 26 of her 30 games have been behind the dish. Howe is batting .315 with a homer, seven RBIs and a team second-best 29 runs scored out of the second slot in the order. Howe also has seven sacrifice hits, two sacrifice flies and is a perfect 5-for-5 on the base-paths.
Howe has also been outstanding behind the backstop with an outstanding .987 fielding percentage that is 2nd among active catchers in the MASCAC.
Cordio earns her second-straight nod as a second-team shortstop. In 31 games (29 at shortstop), Cordio batted .314 with, five doubles, one homer, seven RBIs, six steals and 25 runs scored.
Cordio hit for a .389 clip with runners in scoring position and posted 10 multi-hit games while she is ranked 5th in fielding percentage among active shortstops.
MASCAC Turfer Coach of the Year, Jen Kapenas, has led her team to a 25-9 overall record, which ties with the 1990 squad for the best win mark in school history. The Lancers also tied with Westfield State for the best record in conference play (12-2) and the regular season title.
Second-seeded Worcester State will take on #3 Salem State on Thursday at 5 PM in the opening round of the MASCAC Tournament at Rockwood Park. The contest is the first-ever home game for the Lancers since the conference tournament started in 2001.