Owls Make Debut In NCAA Regional Poll; 3 Little East Teams Represented

Keene State Captures ECAC Softball Championship

NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. - Keene State College made its debut in the final edition of the NCAA Division III Softball New England Regional rankings, marking the third Little East Conference institution to be represented in the eight-team field. Rhode Island College leads the conference contingent at No. 2, while Eastern Connecticut is two spots back followed by the Owls in seventh.

The NCAA Division III Selection Committee will announce the seeding order for each of the eight regions of the 2009 NCAA Tournament on Monday, May 4. Last season, the Anchorwomen earned the conference's automatic bid as the Little East Champions, while Western Connecticut State University and the Warriors received at-large bids.

The Anchorwomen (36-4) moved up two spots in the latest New England poll, after sporting a 6-1 mark this past week, including a 4-0 mark against regionally-ranked opponents. Head Coach Maria Morin guided her club to doubleheader sweeps over No. 5 Brandeis University (9-4, 4-1) and then-No. 3 Eastern Connecticut (2-1, 6-4). Sophomore Kayla Jandreau (Plainville, Conn.) paced the Rhode Island College attack, batting .476 (10-for-21) from the plate with three home runs and nine RBI. She hit safely in each game, including a three-knock afternoon at the Colonials on April 26.

Eastern Connecticut slipped one spot to fourth this week with a 3-3 record. Five of the Warriors six games were decided by two or less runs with Eastern Connecticut posting a 2-3 mark. Freshman infielder Priscilla Alicea (Trumbull, Conn.) led the Warriors' attack with a .471 average, on eight hits in 17 at-bats. Classmate Molly Rathbun (Hebron, Conn.) was dominant in the pitching circle, sporting a 0.71 ERA in 19.2 innings with 30 strikeouts. The Warriors enter the 2009 Little East Tournament seeded third, drawing intra-state rival Western Connecticut in the first round.

Keene State is streaking into the Little East Tournament-winning 13 of its past 15 games-to earn the second seed. The Owls split a conference series with Eastern Connecticut on April 26, and completed a halted game with Rhode Island College in dramatic fashion with a walk-off win in the 10th inning. Head Coach Charlie Beach's charges used a well-balanced attack this past week with four student-athletes hitting over .400, paced by Haley Chandler (Wakefield, Mass.) and Katie Bradford (Lebanon, N.H.). Chandler supplied the power in the lineup, recording four extra-base hits-a pair of doubles and home runs-and 11 RBI.

For complete coverage of the Little East Softball Championship, click on Tournament Central for live stats and video broadcast links for each of the game. Tournament Central will also post an updated bracket along with a complete box score and game recap.