The Brandeis women’s softball team is well into their season with 10 wins and seven losses. The team is lead by new Head Coach Danielle DelPonte and assistant coaches Kelley Fluet and Emily Kraytenberg. The captains include Jordan Buscetto ’16 and classmates Madison Gagnon ’16, Danielle Novotny ’16 and Madison Sullivan ’16. Recently, catcher Novotny and third baseman Sullivan were named to the 2016 University Athletic Association Softball All-Tournament team. The Brandeis softball team finished second in the UAA tournament while in Florida from March 8-13.
Novotny is a major in Psychology with minors in English and Legal Studies and would like to get a job in Human Resources after graduation. Outside of softball she enjoys reading, playing video games and cooking. Her introduction to softball was first through t-ball and before playing for Brandeis, Novotny was a pitcher on her city’s softball team which was her first real experience with softball. Her original softball hero was Vicky Galindo, a famous left-handed slap-hitter: “It was a huge inspiration to see her play successfully and I really wanted to be her.”
Novotny describes her recent recognition as “a really great honor to be named to the University Athletic Association All-Tournament team because I have been playing softball my whole life, and it makes me really happy to be recognized for my efforts.” When asked about the work that she has put in until this point Novotny says, “I have always taken hitting strategies seriously. As a left-handed hitter I know that I have quite a few tools to surprise any defense, and I try to use them all when the situation is right. I wouldn’t be the hitter I am today without my hitting coach, Debbie Nelson, and my parents all of whom supported me and gave me advice throughout my career.”
In looking back on her collegiate career she highlighted some of her favorite moments. During Novotny’s sophomore year she hit her first collegiate home run which was a grand-slam against Case Western in UAAs and in the same tournament she hit the double which scored Leah Shapiro ’17 to win against Emory. She also includes getting to catch in games this season as a highlight since it’s her favorite position on the field. Novotny would love to continue her softball career after college and her dream would be to join Team USA.
Sullivan is a double major in Psychology and Health: Science, Society and Policy. After graduation she plans on entering the public health field and possibly working for a non-profit or in health care administration. She considers being from New Hampshire a contributing factor to her enjoyment of outdoor hobbies like swimming and kayaking. Besides softball, Sullivan also enjoys playing soccer, basketball and hockey recreationally. Her interest in softball stemmed from baseball always being a part of her life since both her dad and brother played and says, “So as soon as I was old enough to sign up I couldn’t wait to start playing.” Initially Sullivan played baseball until the age of 13, and then decided to switch over to softball.
With her recent achievement Sullivan also feels honored and says, “There is a lot of talent in our conference and to be able to represent Brandeis on this team feels like a great accomplishment.” Leading up to this point Sullivan believes that when she was a first-year and first coming into the program that she didn’t realize the time and hard work it takes to succeed at this level. She says it takes consistent work to build on skills and get the body to its peak athleticism. “For the rest of my career, I dedicated myself to being the best player I could be for the team, which involved a lot of outside work.”
Sullivan says there have been so many great moments while playing for Brandeis, which includes beating Emory for the first time as a program at the top of the list and the 12-game winning streak that took place her junior year where they went on to win the ECAC tournament. More recently her favorite moment was the team’s UAA tournament in Florida which took place earlier this month. At the conference the Judges placed second with the best conference record since 2010. “We played hard each and every game and I was so proud of everything our team accomplished at the tournament.” Sullivan also shared that the team loves to dance before games to keep them loose and the energy up. For personal rituals she always wears a gold headband and is constantly switching between chewing gum and spitting seeds, depending on how the game is going.
The softball team’s next game will take place this Friday, April 1 at Worcester State.
