Three Wheaton players corral NEWMAC All-Conference softball honors

May 2, 2007

WORCESTER, MA- Three Wheaton College softball players earned spots on the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) All-Conference teams during Wednesday's postseason coaches meeting at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Senior co-captains Jessica DePolito (Taunton, MA/Coyle and Cassidy) and Nicole Lachance (Rochester, NH/Spaulding) were each named to the first team, while sophomore Stacey Kelleher (Brockton, MA/Brockton) drew a place on the second team.

DePolito capped her final collegiate season with her third straight all-conference citation, being selected for the first team for the second consecutive spring. She was the lone first baseman named to the first squad. Lachance landed on the first team for the first time after making the second team last year and was the lone full-time shortstop named to either squad. In her first season of NEWMAC play, Kelleher earned her initial all-conference honor. The trio helped the Lyons launch 44 home runs, breaking a 10-year-old school record by six in 11 fewer games. Wheaton is seventh in the nation in dingers per game (1.07).

DePolito started all 41 games at first base while hitting .463, cracking 14 home runs and driving in 42 runs. Among her 57 hits were nine doubles, and she scored 37 runs. The NEWMAC's leader in home runs ranked second in RBI, third in batting, tied for third in hits, tied for fifth in runs and tied for eighth in doubles. She actually hit better in league play, batting .500 while swatting eight longballs with 25 RBI in 16 games. The nation's fourth-leading home run hitter, DePolito batted .478 with runners in scoring position and collected 13 two-out RBI. She twice had streaks of at least three games with a home run, had two streaks of at least eight games with a hit, provided 20 multiple-hit games and notched 12 multiple-RBI games. DePolito's home run total was the third highest in program history, and she'll graduate third at Wheaton with 24 career longballs.

Lachance started all 41 games batting out of the leadoff spot while settling in as the starting shortstop for the second straight season early in the campaign. A .396 hitter, Lachance swatted 10 home runs and 10 doubles while scoring 43 runs, driving in 37, drawing 15 bases on balls and stealing nine bags. In league play, she had a .439 average, six home runs and 21 RBI in 16 games. Lachance turned in 15 multiple-hit performances, 10 multi-RBI games and a team-leading 17 two-out RBI. Arguably the NEWMAC's most productive leadoff hitter, Lachance finished second in the league in runs, tied for third in home runs and triples, fourth in each hits and RBI, tied for sixth in doubles and 10th in batting.

After overcoming an injury at the start of conference play, Kelleher appeared in 25 contests as the designated player while seeing her first significant action as a college player. She finished third on the team in walks (11) while slugging .620 with seven doubles and three homers, as well as driving in 21 runs, including 14 in 14 NEWMAC contests. A .400 hitter with runners in scoring position, Kelleher had nine multi-hit games and plated runs during 13 different contests out of the three hole. Kelleher, who had an 11-game hitting streak in the middle of the season, drove in nine runs while slugging .800 in 25 at bats from the fifth inning on.

Wheaton completed the spring with a 25-16 overall mark and an 11-5 record in the NEWMAC, placing second in the conference standings. The Lyons extended their streak of seasons with 23-plus wins to 14, during which time the Blue and White has recorded at least a tie for second in regular season play on 13 occasions. Wheaton's campaign ended on Saturday in the third round of the NEWMAC Tournament with a 9-7 loss to Babson College.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 5/2/07.
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