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Judy Groff has been on the winning side of 922 games in her 41 years as head softball coach at American International College, but unfortunately too few have been in recent years.
Maybe that's why it's so gratifying for an old sportswriter, a junior at AIC in 1969 when Groff began the softball program at the school, to see that this year's Yellow Jackets are on the cusp of making the Northeast 10 tournament for the first time since 2003.
AIC, which lost a couple of extra-inning heartbreakers Sunday, hosts Pace University at appropriately-named Groff Field Wednesday in a 3 p.m. twin bill.
The Setters (12-6) are the only one of three NE-10 rivals AIC meets between now and the April 29-May 3 tournament with a winning record. The Yellow Jackets (12-10 conference, 20-18 overall) sit in seventh, looking for a spot in an eight-team tournament. Doubleheaders with Stonehill (10-10) and UMass Lowell (5-16-1) end AIC's regular season.
Among the reasons AIC (10-18 NE-10, 19-24 overall last year) is looking not only at a berth, but also at a long shot at a top-four, home game-earning finish, are three Pioneer Valley athletes who brought a championship tradition to AIC with them.
First baseman
Kellie Brown and outfielder
Ashleigh St. Peter both played for Turners Falls during the years the Indians dominated WM and state play, while shortstop and co-captain
Deanna Zanetti helped Minnechaug Regional to a sectional championship.
Brown, a four-time first-team All-Scholastic player at Turners Falls during years the Indians won three straight WM and two straight state titles, is a four-year starter who is hitting .299 with a team-best 21 RBIs for the Yellow Jackets. Following a freshman year in which she hit eight home runs, and a sophomore season in which she slumped to .262, Brown hit .343 and slugged .523 last season. She had 16 career home runs and 92 RBIs.
Tuesday, Brown was named to the NE-10 weekly honor roll for batting .417 with three doubles, a homer and six RBIs in six games last week.
St. Peter, who did a year post-grad at Stoneleigh-Burnham after winning four straight WM and state titles at Turners, is still getting her sea legs in the batter's box, but has played errorless ball in center field.
Zanetti, who has not missed a start - 175 in all - as a collegian, suffered the same sophomore jinx Brown did. She rebounded to .316 with a team-leading 29 RBIs last year and is hitting .286 this season.