The 2008 Lesley University softball season concluded ten days ago with the Lynx falling to Rivier College in a tight 1-0 loss at the NCAA DIII Regionals, but this team will certainly be remembered for a season full of accomplishments and achievements that cannot be matched by any other program in Lesley history.
The Lynx softball team became the first team of any sport in Lesley history to win a conference championship after beating UMaine-Farmington for the North Atlantic Conference Championship up in Bangor, ME. The Lynx had lost to the Beavers on day one of the conference tournament, but successfully reeled off three straight victories to take the NAC title.
By winning the conference, Lesley earned the automatic qualifying bid into the NCAA DIII Tournament. The competition that the Lynx faced in their regional bracket was fierce but the lost by just one run to each of their opponents, one of which was nationally ranked. The Lynx lost 3-2 to Wellesley College, at one time ranked 22nd in the nation, and the following day lost 1-0 to Rivier College.
Lesley faced some stiff competition throughout their entire season starting with spring training down in Fort Myers, FL in the Gene Cusic Classic, a trip that the team has made for the past several years. While the Lynx escape with a 2-6 record against difficult teams from around the country, the experience prepared them for what would be a memorable regular season.
Any doubt that the Lynx would have a rough 2008 season was quickly erased as the team won their first ten games when they returned from Florida. This included an 6-0 start against NAC opponents Bay Path College, Wheelock College, and Maine Maritime Academy. The Lynx would win these games in impressive fashion as they won by an average of nearly nine runs per game.
Lesley would continue their success against the conference finishing the regular season with a 17-3 mark against the NAC and tying Husson College for first place. Their only losses would come in a home doubleheader sweep from Husson and a split series with UMaine-Farmington. The Lynx would later beat both these teams in the NAC Championships en route to the title.
Around the diamond, the 2008 Lynx squad were full of impact players who tallied some amazing accomplishments. The team ended up with four First Team All-Conference and one Second Team All-Conference selections. The Lynx also were honored as having the NAC Player of the Year, Jodi Fralick (Woburn, Mass.), and NAC Rookie of the Year, Alyson Durben (Stow, Mass.), on their roster.
Along with Fralick and Durben, junior pitcher Alicia Burnett (Gulf Breeze, Fla.) and Lani Cabral-Pini (Wilmington, Mass.) would earn First Team honors with Burnett winning NAC Tournament MVP. Gianna Spaziante (Hawthorne, N.Y.) regained conference recognition as she won Second Team honors, two years after getting named to the First Team squad.
Durben would receive additional recognition from outside of the conference as both the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and the New England Intercollegiate Softball Coaches Association named the freshman to their Second Team All-Regional selections.
Despite all the individual achievements, the Lynx were able to play together as a team to become one of the best teams in New England this past season. Head Coach Jen Benway will look to relay her team's success this year forward into the New England Collegiate Conference, Lesley's new conference starting in the Fall of 2008.
To learn more about the Lesley University softball team, please visit their website.