BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College continues its look back at the 2014-15 athletic campaign with Top 10 Stories from the past year including the No. 2 story – the softball team reaching the NCAA Division III Super Regional in Greencastle, Indiana to cap off its 2015 season.
The Hounds posted a 38-8 overall record this spring, the second most wins in a season in school history, and the Greyhounds also captured the Landmark Conference Championship, their 14th conference title, the NCAA Division III Rochester (N.Y.) Regional Championship, the program's fourth NCAA regional trophy and a trip to the NCAA Division III Super Regional as the Hounds fell a win shy of a trip to the NCAA Division III Championship Series. Moravian was also ranked No. 14 in the final NFCA Division III Top 25 poll of the season.
Head Coach John Byrne also hit a milestone during the year as he reached the 700-win plateau on April 25 versus The College of Staten Island in his 22nd season leading the Hounds. The victory also came on senior day.
"It was nice to get the 700th win, and the fact that a lot of former players were there on the that Saturday afternoon in April made it even more special," explained Byrne. "I've been around a long time and had a lot of good players. We've tried to win every game I've coached and when you win the vast majority of them, I feel pretty good about that. I didn't hit a ball, field a ball or pitch a ball. All that is the players that have played for me."
The season actually had a rough start when the team opened up on March 8 at the National Training Center Spring Games in Clermont, Florida. Moravian had a lead in the seventh inning of both of its contests on opening day but fell to Fontbonne (Mo.) University, 9-8 in 10 innings) and Millikin (Ill.) University, 7-3.
The Greyhounds bounced back the next day at started a 14-game winning streak that included three extra-inning wins. The streak ended when the Hounds fell in the opening game of a doubleheader versus Muhlenberg College on April 9 but Moravian won the second game of the twinbill. After a 1-0 loss in the opening game at Susquehanna University two days later, the Greyhounds would win their final 15 games of the regular season to head to the Landmark Conference Tournament at 30-4.
The loss to Susquehanna put the two schools in a tie for first in the conference standings, and the Crusaders would be the host for the conference tournament by road winning percentage in conference contests. Moravian opening the tournament with a 2-0 victory versus The Catholic University of America before falling to fourth seeded Elizabethtown College, 7-6; in a winner's bracket game. The Hounds would come back on day two of the tournament to win three games including defeating Elizabethtown twice for the conference title and automatic berth to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
Moravian made its 15th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and first since 2012 the following weekend. It was the first trip under the new format that has three and four team regionals the first weekend and then super regionals the second weekend before the championship series. The Greyhounds were shipped to the University of Rochester (N.Y.) as the top seed, the Moravian won both of its opening day games with a 3-2 win versus Penn State-Berks and a 3-2, nine-inning victory over host Rochester. Moravian and Rochester faced off on day two with Moravian needing one win to advance. The Hounds fell, 6-3, in the first game before taking the final game of the regional, 4-2, to advance to the second weekend.
The Greyhounds were shipped to DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana for the NCAA Division III Super Regional. Once again, the Hounds were the higher seeded team and Moravian would win the opening contest in the best-of-three series, 6-5 in eight innings, on a two-RBI walk off double by sophomore second baseman Madison Newhouser. Once again, Moravian needed just one win on the second day to advance in the tournament. The Hounds led the opening game with DePauw 6-1 before the hosts came back and won 9-6 in a game that included a nearly four-hour rain delay. In the if necessary contest, The Hounds jumped out to a 7-0 lead after two innings as the road team but once again, DePauw rebounded and won 10-7 as the Greyhounds season came to a close.
The postseason full of wins and a total of 12 games also included numerous awards for the players. Senior first baseman Jenn Dalickas was named to the Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III All-America First Team, and she was also the ECAC Division III South and Landmark Conference Player of the Year for the second straight spring. Dalickas was also the Lehigh Valley Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women Outstanding Athlete for softball and she shared the LVAIAW Moravian Outstanding Athlete and Moravian's Senior Athlete of the Year award with women's basketball standout Alexis Wright.
Dalcikas, senior centerfielder Dior George and freshman pitcher Josie Novak earned spots on the NFCA All-Atlantic Region Team with Dalickas on the First Team and George and Novak on the Third Team. The trio was also named to the ECAC Division III South All-Star First Team with Novak garnering Co-Rookie of the Year honors.
The squad had six players honored by the Landmark Conference on the field. Dalickas, George, Novak and junior right fielder Mary Schlosbon all earned spots on the Landmark All-Conference First Team with Novak picking up Rookie of the Year accolades to go along with Dalickas' major award. Junior second baseman Lindsay Sullivan and freshman pitcher Amanda Carisone were named to the All-Conference Second Team. A total of eight players including George, Schlosbon, Sullivan, senior Lizzie Mack, junior Kiersten Cain and sophomores Victoria Conner, Abby Jeffries and Chrissy Marinaro made the Landmark Conference Spring Academic Honor Roll.
Moravian also had four players – Mack, George, Carisone and Novak – named to the Regional All-Tournament Team in Rochester.
"This was a special group and an outstanding year," said Byrne. "The three seniors, Jenn, Dior and Lizzie had the opportunity as freshmen to win a conference championship and go to regionals where they fell a little short. Then we had a couple of years where we fell short of a conference championship, which we had won 13 years in a row. I know they wanted to put this program back to where it had been when they arrived here and I told them at the end that I was so proud of them for accomplishing that goal. We are now back to where we belong and that there are only eight teams playing after today and they have nothing to be ashamed of since they did everything they could. They had great individual careers and more importantly academic careers. I couldn't be more proud of them, the way they represented the college, the program and themselves throughout the four years and I wish them nothing but the best in the future."
Coach Byrne has 17 players and seven starters slated to be back on the field in 2016.
Number one on our Top 10 Stories will be announced on Monday, August 17.
