DePaul Softball Sweeps BIG EAST End of Year Awards
5/6/2014 12:00:00 AM | SOFTBALL
May 6, 2014
NEW YORK - Already regular season champions and the top overall seed at this weekend's BIG EAST Championship, DePaul softball swept all the major BIG EAST Conference year-end awards announced on Tuesday.
Junior slugger Mary Connolly was selected the first BIG EAST Player of the Year in program history, while senior ace Kirsten Verdun became the unanimous Pitcher of the Year and outfielder Dylan Christensen earned Rookie of the Year honors. Head coach Eugene Lenti and his staff were also named BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year.
The major award sweep was the fifth in BIG EAST history, as DePaul became the third different team to claim all four certificates. The Blue Demons are the first team to sweep the awards since 2001.
Connolly, one of the most feared hitters in the conference, is tops in the BIG EAST in batting average (.412), slugging percentage (.772), runs scored (39), RBI (41) and on-base percentage (.500). She is also second in total bases (105) and third in homers (13) and hits (56). Twice named BIG EAST Player of the Week, Connolly is the only .400 hitter in the conference and posted a .481 mark in league play. She is the first BIG EAST Player of the Year in program history.
"Mary had the kind of year most kids dream about having," said Lenti. "She was the most-feared hitter in the league and people pitched around her whenever they could. Just her presence in the box was was an intimidating type of thing. You look at the numbers and there's no one in the league that can really compare to what she was able to do."
Verdun was lights out during conference play, leading the BIG EAST with a 1.08 ERA and 13-0 mark in conference games - the fourth-most wins in league play in BIG EAST history. She leads the conference with a 1.79 ERA this season and her 28 overall wins rank third in the nation. The Coal City, Ill. native held league opponents to a .159 batting average and struck out 89 in 71 innings. She also threw two no-hitters during the month of April, defeating Seton Hall and Villanova with dominating performances.
Verdun is DePaul's third Pitcher of the Year since joining the league prior to the 2006 season. Becca Heteniak (2008-09) was a two-time honoree and Tracie Adix won the award in 2007.
"It's an amazing thing to go undefeated in conference play," said Lenti. "To face teams two times in a weekend, sometimes three times in a save situation, you have to constantly reinvent yourself as a pitcher. You have to play half your games on the road, you're playing in hostile environments and crazy weather. There's so many factors that can work against you, and to go undefeated really speaks volumes to the type of focus she has."
The fourth Rookie of the Year in program history, Christensen became the first for DePaul since Verdun took the award in 2011. The freshman from Chula Vista, Calif. has hit in the cleanup spot for the Blue Demons most of the season and hit .449 with two homers and 20 RBI during league play - both marks ranked second to Connolly. For the season, she tied for the BIG EAST lead in doubles (15) with teammate Allie Braden.
"The amazing thing about Dylan is just her presence in the batter's box as a freshman," said Lenti. "Most freshmen go through some ups and downs, but she was pretty consistent against everybody. She really never had a bad week. In seven weeks of conference play, she was able to put up good numbers every week and for her it was all about her approach and maturity -- especially being the number four hitter in a lineup with Verdun, Connolly and Allie Braden."
The BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year went to Lenti, associate head coach Lindsay Chouinard, assistant coach Tammy Williams and director of operations Jackie Tarulli. It was the fourth time DePaul's coaching staff has claimed the award and the first time since 2010. While Lenti has been a constant in his 33rd year guiding the program, Chouinard, Tarulli and Williams were all new to the staff in 2014.
"It's really a credit to my staff. Obviously I've been doing this for a long time, but to have Jackie, Lindsay and Tammy come in here and help change the culture was a positive thing. Not only are they great teachers, but they're good role models and are able to adjust what they know to what each player needs to get better. I think that's why we were so successful as a group."
DePaul enters the postseason as the top overall seed in the BIG EAST Championship with a 39-9 (.812) record and an 18-1 (.947) mark in conference play. The win total was the most for the team since 2011. Winners in 21 of its past 22 games, DePaul leads the BIG EAST in nearly every statistical category. The regular season crown belonged to the Blue Demons for the fourth time.
DePaul totaled a league-high six All-BIG EAST honorees, including a conference-best four on the first team. Verdun (unanimous), Connolly, Christensen and Megan Coronado all earned first-team recognition, while Staci Bonezek and Allie Braden were voted to the All-BIG EAST Second Team.
"I'm proud of all the award-winners, and I'm proud of everybody on this team -- whether they were award-winners or not," said Lenti. "You don't win a conference regular season championship without everybody, so this is really a credit to every single kid. We're on our way to making this one of the more memorable years we've had and this is just another feather in their cap."
The BIG EAST Championship featuring DePaul, St. John's, Georgetown and Creighton kicks off on Friday, May 9, in Rosemont, Ill. The top-seeded Blue Demons and fourth-seeded Bluejays will face each other at 1 p.m. (CT), followed by the No. 2 seed Red Storm against the No 3. Seed Hoyas at 3:30 (CT). Both BIG EAST Semifinal games can be watched live on the FOX Sports Go app, or viewed via tape delay at 6:30 p.m. (CT) and 8:30 p.m. (CT) on FOX Sports 2. Saturday's BIG EAST Final will air live at 11:00 a.m. (CT) on FOX Sports 1.
All-BIG EAST First Team^
Becca Changstrom, Creighton, Sr., P
Kirsten Verdun, DePaul, Sr., P*
Erin Burner, St. John's, Jr., C*
Mary Connolly, DePaul, Jr., 1B
Kristin Boros, Butler, Jr., 2B
Liz Dike, Creighton, Jr., SS
Kaitlin Fitzgerald, St. John's, Fr., 3B
Alexis Cantu, Creighton, Sr., P/UT
Danielle DeStaso, Seton Hall, Jr., DP/UT
Kiarra Baldassari, Providence, So., OF
Dylan Christensen, DePaul, Fr., OF
Megan Coronado, DePaul, Sr., OF
Jacqueline DiPietro, Seton Hall, So., OF
Elyse Graziano, Georgetown, Sr., OF
*unanimous selection
^Due to a three-way tie for All-BIG EAST First Team outfielders, two extra players were added
All-BIG EAST Second Team
Tori Free, St. John's, So., P
Kate Poppe, Villanova, So., P
Staci Bonezek, DePaul, Jr., C
Jackie Reed, St. John's, Sr., 1B
Maria DeLuca, Seton Hall, Sr., 2B
Allie Braden, DePaul, Sr., SS
Blair Lowe, Creighton, Sr., 3B
Megan Hyson, Georgetown, Jr., P/UT
Danielle Deraney, Providence, So., DP/UT
Alexandria Anttila, Georgetown, Sr., OF
Brittany Garcia, St. John's, Fr., OF
Samantha Giovanniello, Georgetown, So., OF
BIG EAST Player of the Year
Mary Connolly, DePaul, Jr., 1B
BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year
Kirsten Verdun, DePaul, Sr., P*
BIG EAST Rookie of the Year
Dylan Christensen, DePaul, Fr., OF
BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
DePaul: Head Coach Eugene Lenti, associate head coach Lindsay Chouinard, assistance coach Tammy Williams and director of operations Jackie Tarulli.
*unanimous selection
