STANDISH, ME - The 2013 Saint Joseph's College softball team enjoyed yet another successful season under the watch of 17th-year head coach Jamie Smyth '92. At the conclusion of the schedule, the 2013 GNAC (Great North Atlantic Conference) Champion Monks posted a 34-13 record (.723) overall with an 18-6 record versus GNAC foes. Entering the conference tournament as the fourth seed, the Monks played tough in nearly every contest, riding the bat of junior shortstop Lindsay Moore (Barrington, N.H.) and the stellar pitching of righties Rae-Marie Copan (Newton, Mass.) and Kayla Vannah (Waldoboro, Maine).
Moore finished the season leading the Monk offense in batting average (.453) and RBI (41), while finishing second in home runs to senior catcher Heather Tripp (Lovell, Maine), who launched four round-trippers.
Dual aces Copan and Vannah led Saint Joseph's pitching attack; posting solid numbers across the board. Copan led the team in wins (14), strikeouts (88) and ERA (1.53) while Vannah registered 10 wins, 79 strikeouts and a 1.65 ERA to boot.
In addition to the statistical leaders, the Monks remained consistently tough to beat throughout the season due to a wide-spread and durable lineup. Contributions came from senior outfielder Danyelle Shufelt (Sutton, Vt.) (.438 BA, 22 stolen bases), multi-sport junior Theresa Hendrix (Scarborough, Maine) (.357 BA, 38 RBI), and junior second baseman Connie Grovo (Limington, Maine), who batted .322 and knocked in 25 base-runners.
The Monks found success immediately to start the schedule, winning eight of their first ten contests while averaging six runs per game. Combined with the strong pitching staff, the Monks submitted their place early as one of the premier teams in the conference.
Following a successful April, a month during which the Monks registered a 15-5 record, the Royal Blue turned their focus to the GNAC Tournament. After beating Johnson & Wales University in the quarterfinal 1-0, the Monks downed the Suffolk Rams 3-0 behind the pitching of Vannah on April 26th, who went seven strong innings, allowing just three hits while punching out seven Rams. The GNAC tourney semifinal was next, and Saint Joseph's again rode their pitching to a 4-0 victory over University of Saint Joseph. It was the Monks' third consecutive victory via the shutout, and the only team blocking the Monks from the GNAC trophy was again, the Suffolk Rams.
The two clubs faced each other Sunday, April 28th in Connecticut. With more shutout pitching from Vannah and a big game from Shufelt (three hits, 3B, three RBI), the Monks once again shutout the Rams 8-0, winning the GNAC championship.
The Monks would go on to win one of three games in the Babson Park Regional NCAA DIII tournament in Babson Park, Massachusetts as a six seed to conclude their season.
WRITTEN BY JACK HOLLY '14
