Softball squad sets multiple records

by Bart K. Feller, Special to the Chronicle

Kaila Holtz (Derek Fowles photo)

he softball team tied, set and then reset a campus record last weekend, closing its regular season with 48 wins by beating UConn on Friday, and taking three from Fordham on Saturday and Sunday. The previous record was 45 wins in 1998.

     The team ends the regular season with a host of impressive numbers, including a 21-0 record over Atlantic 10 conference opponents and an overall record of 48-10. It is the fifth time UMass has gone undefeated in conference games.

     The current winning streak is now at 33 games, tying UMass with UCLA's 1992 team for eighth on the all-time NCAA consecutive win list.

     The previous record was 24. The record-setting 25th consecutive win came April 24, one day shy of the anniversary of last year's loss to UConn in Storrs during an attempt to set the same record. This year, junior pitcher Kaila Holtz, of North Vancouver, British Columbia, and member of the Canadian National Team, had a perfect game until the 7th inning, when she gave up a hit on the first pitch, finishing with a 1-hit, no-walk shutout.

     The Minutewomen extended other winning streaks to 49 games in the A-10 and 40 games at home - both records dating to the team's loss to Dayton on April 30, 2000.

Jennifer Hadley (Derek Fowles photo)

     The team's continued success is due to dominating pitching, fast and smart base-running, and the ability to do the "little things," like bunting. While streaks don't excite head coach Elaine Sortino much, she said she is pleased with the team's overall performance.

      "I just think this is the best team we've ever had in all the years I've coached," she said. "It's no accident that these kids have done what they've done."

     Sortino has a record of 780 wins, 337 losses and 3 ties in her 23 seasons at UMass.

     In Sunday's game the Minutewomen beat Fordham at the UMass Softball Complex in front of more than 400 fans. UMass scored three runs in the first inning, including a two-run homer by senior Scooter Wheeler, her ninth of the year and 26th of her career, extending her team record. She also leads the team with 148 career RBI. Holtz hit a three-run homer, her first of the year, to spark a five-run second inning and the Minutewomen cruised to a 13-0 victory. Senior pitcher Jennifer Hadley gave up two hits and no walks for the win, improving her record to 21-5.

     It was Hadley's third consecutive shutout, her eighth of the season and the team's 21st. She has now pitched 23 innings without giving up a run. The UMass pitching staff now have a combined earned run average of 0.90, and is ranked 8th in the country.

      The team was scheduled to start the postseason Thursday with the A-10 tournament at the University of Rhode Island, playing the host Rams. The Minutewomen are the No. 1 seed and are looking for their eighth consecutive A-10 championship.

     "We have the offense, defense and pitching to do what we need to do, and if - in this order - the pitching, defense, and offense show up, we'll be okay," Sortino said.

     The tournament continues through Saturday. If UMass wins the A-10 tournament, they advance to the NCAA regionals for the eighth time, where they will try to earn the team's fourth trip to the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City.