University of Connecticut Athletics
Reflecting on the 2004 UConn Softball Season
5/19/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
The 2004 University of Connecticut softball season may not have gone as planned, but the experience gained will undoubtedly help a young team reverse their fortune next year. The squad hoped to rise above their eighth-place preseason BIG EAST ranking, but instead finished the season in 10th place of 11 teams. Despite the disappointment, the Huskies had a string of success in March, and also picked up many individual awards at the conclusion of the year.
UConn began their season with two close losses at the Cox Communications Classic hosted by the University of Florida. The Huskies started the day up 3-0 over Winthrop, but ended up losing the game 6-4. In game two, UConn and Western Michigan played nine innings before the Broncos finally pulled out a 4-3 win after the tiebreaker rule was implemented. A highlight of the day for the Huskies saw freshman Holly Calcagno (Cedar Grove, N.J.) record her first collegiate hit with a home run in the top of the seventh inning. UConn continued to struggle on the second day of the Classic, suffering a loss to Gardner-Webb in 11 innings by a score of 3-2, losing 7-0 to then-23rd ranked Florida.
Junior Jessica Gurney (Williamstown, Mass.) notched her first-ever win on the mound in UConn’s first win of the season, a 10-2 defeat of Jacksonville in the final game of the tournament at Florida.
The Huskies were on the road again the following week for their Spring Break trip, beginning with the Seminole Challenge hosted by Florida State. UConn held its own with six hits including a home run against #12 Louisiana-Lafayette in game two, but ultimately was edged by the Ragin’ Cajuns by a score of 2-1. Junior Mandy Schettini (Coxsackie, N.Y.) homered in the top of the fourth to tie the score at 1-1, but a homer by Louisiana-Lafayette’s in the bottom of the sixth was the game-winner. In their first game of the day, UConn had suffered a 5-0 shutout at the hands of St. John’s.
UConn recorded win number two for the season with nine runs in the fourth inning against Rhode Island to ultimately defeat the Rams 11-2. Gurney pitched the complete game to take the win for the Huskies, striking out five batters and giving up just one hit and zero earned runs. UConn lost a 3-1 decision to Penn State the same day, and was defeated by fourth-ranked Florida State in their final game the following day to end the tournament with a 1-4 record. Three more losses followed to end the week-long trip, but would be the final defeats UConn would suffer for quite awhile.
The winning began for the Huskies at the Buzz Classic in Marietta, Ga. A 2-0 win over Miami (Ohio) started things off on the right foot in pool play, and an 8-2 defeat of UNC Greensboro gave the UConn two wins to conclude the first day of play. The following morning, the Huskies used 13 hits to help rout Coastal Carolina by a score of 12-3. UConn then concluded play in their pool with a perfect record after taking a 7-1 win over UNC Wilmington.
Only 12 of the 25 teams in the tournament advanced to bracket play, and UConn earned the fourth seed of the 12 and a bye for the first round. The Huskies faced arguably the tougest opponent at the tournament in the quarterfinals, #21 Georgia Tech. UConn ran into trouble early on as the Yellow Jackets took a 2-0 lead, but a five-run fourth inning for the Huskies proved to be enough to win the game, as Georgia Tech was only able to come within one run, 5-4.
The semifinal round pitted UConn against N.C. State, and the Huskies rolled to a 7-0 shutout. Gurney earned her fourth win of the weekend in the game, striking out 10 batters and walking none, and Calcagno knocked out two home runs in the contest.
After posting a 6-0 through the semifinals, the Huskies were named Co-Champions of the tournament along with Minnesota. The final game was unable to be played due to time constraints. UConn finished the weekend not only defeating all six of their opponents, but out-scoring them 42-10. Gurney was named the BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week after her performances at the Classic.
The winning continued for UConn, who used solid fielding to hold off a late rally by Yale in game one of a doubleheader, and then shut out the Bulldogs 3-0 in game two to record their seventh and eighth straight victories. Yale scored twice in the top of the seventh to come back from a 3-0 deficit in game one, but the Huskies’ Jessica Quan (Stockton, Calif.) collected a hit ball at second base in time to throw home to Ashleigh Campen (Rougemont, N.C.) for the putout on the last runner trying to get to home plate. Freshman Krista Michalczyk (Salem, N.H.) picked up her first collegiate win in the second game, striking out three batters and giving up no runs.
UConn won its ninth straight with a 7-1 victory in the first game of a doubleheader against Virginia Tech, but the streak was broken in the second game. The Huskies came back from a 6-1 deficit in the second game, but ultimately lost to the Hokies who scored the winning run in the top of the seventh to pull out a 7-6 victory. Gurney earned her eighth win of the season on the mound in game one, and both Quan and senior Maggie Arbogast (Ambler, Pa.) homered for the Huskies in the win.
Head coach Karen Mullins coached her 1,000th career game in the first game of the day against Virginia Tech, and her team made it a win.
The Huskies picked up two wins with consecutive shutouts against Quinnipiac on March 30 to improve their season record to 13-12. Gurney struck out 12 and allowed no earned runs in game one, and sophomore Michelle Caouette (Wynantskill, N.Y.) fanned nine and gave up just one hit in the nightcap. Arbogast was a strong leader for the Huskies throughout the most successful portion of their season, recording a hit in eight straight games, and tallying hits in all but five of the Huskies’ first 25 games of the season.
UConn faced their toughest league opponent when they traveled to Notre Dame in early April, and the Irish dominated both games of a doubleheader.
An exciting 14-inning game followed for the Huskies a few days later, and they prevailed with a 4-1 victory at Rhode Island. The game had been locked in a 1-1 tie up to inning 14, and junior Jen Ward (Gales Ferry, Conn.) drove in the winning run with a single. Sophomore Erica Pernell (Plainville, Conn.) increased the lead with a bases-loaded two RBI single. Two losses against Boston College followed, but UConn then rebounded to win eight of their next 10 games, beginning with an 11-0 shutout at CCSU. Gurney and Caouette combined for a no-hitter in the game. The Huskies took the second game of the doubleheader by a score of 2-0.
Two BIG EAST splits came next for UConn, as the Huskies traded games with both Rutgers and Villanova on the road. Gurney pitched a complete-game shutout in game one as UConn defeated Rutgers 2-0, and the Scarlet Knights rebounded in the second game to record a shutout of their own with a 5-0 win. At Villanova, Schettini’s RBI single in the top of the sixth was enough to give UConn a win in game one, and the Wildcats went on to win game two 2-1. Gurney earned the title of BIG EAST Co-Pitcher of the Week the following Monday, marking her second such honor of the season. Gurney had gone 3-1 in the circle for the week, and had allowed only one earned run in the four games.
Three home runs helped UConn hold off the Boston University Terriers 10-6 in a home game on April 20. Suzy de Bary (Roxbury, Conn.) knocked one over the fences to bring three runs home as part of a five-run sixth inning for the Huskies. The next day, Ward drove in the winning run in extra innings to give UConn a 4-3 win over visiting UMass. The Huskies out-hit the Minutewomen 18-6 in the game, with the 18 hits being the most ever given up by UMass in a single game throughout the history of their program.
Two more wins followed for the Huskies, who recorded the game-winning run in the bottom of the seventh in game one, and a three-run sixth inning in game two to sweep St. John’s by scores of 7-6 and 4-1.
The final six games of the season were a downhill battle for the Huskies, who recorded just one win in the home stretch. Seton Hall took two games from UConn in late April, with the Huskies never finding an offensive rhythm against the Pirates.
On April 29 UConn traveled to Syracuse for a doubleheader, and split the games with the Orangewomen. Both games were decided by just one run, as Syracuse took game one 3-2, and UConn recorded the game two win by a score of 4-3. In each game, the losing team scored all of their runs with a rally in the final inning.
The Huskies recorded their final two decisions of the season on May 1 with two losses at Providence. The next weekend, UConn honored Arbogast in what was to be the final day of play with a doubleheader against Pittsburgh, but the games were called with three innings gone in game one due to rain.
The New England Intercollegiate Softball Coaches’ Association recognized three members of team as honorable mentions on the 2004 All Star Team. Gurney was named an honorable mention pitcher, while juniors Jen D’Angelo (Wyomissing, Pa.) and Stephanie DiBiase (Hamilton, N.J.) took the two honorable mention outfielder spots.
UConn received three more nods in the BIG EAST voting, with Schettini and DiBiase receiving All-BIG EAST Second Team honors, and Arbogast being named to the All-BIG EAST Third Team.
