Boston U.’s Shayne Lotito (Acton, Calif./Vasquez) has been named America East Player of the Week, while teammate Cassidi Hardy (Jupiter, Fla./Jupiter) earns Pitcher of the Week honors. Vermont’s Alison Daggett (Fort Collins, Colo./Fort Collins) is the America East Rookie of the Week. The accolades were announced Monday (May 1).
Lotito went 9-17 (.529) and hit safely in four of five games last week, leading Boston U. to a 3-2 mark. On Wednesday at Maine, Lotito had a career-high five hits and went 5-for-5 with two runs scored. She followed that up by going 1-for-3 against Brown on Thursday and hit her first career home run – a two-run shot in a 4-1 Terrier victory. In the second game of a doubleheader at Albany on Saturday, Lotito went 2-for-4 with an RBI, and on Sunday, she went 1-for-2 with a triple, RBI and run scored in Boston U.’s 4-1 victory. Lotito leads the Terriers with a .358 batting average and her 21 steals are the third-highest single-season total in school history.
Hardy was dominant in three games this week, including back-to-back one hitters at Albany over the weekend. She took a no-hitter into the sixth inning against the Great Danes on Saturday, before a Maegan Larsen double broke it up. She finished with a one-hitter in a 2-1 Boston U. victory, in which she struck out six and walked four, while allowing just one earned run. On Sunday, Hardy retired the first 18 Great Dane batters and had a perfect game into the seventh inning. Larsen hit a home run leading off the seventh to spoil the bid, but Hardy retired the next three Great Dane batters to settle for the one-hitter and a 4-1 victory. She struck out six and did not walk anyone.
Daggett provided the Catamounts with a big boost both at the plate and in the circle this week. The freshman went 2-1, including pitching a complete-game shutout against Hartford on Saturday, striking out six and only allowing two hits. She also went 2-for-3 at the plate with a solo home run in the game. On Sunday she came in and pitched the eighth inning versus the Hawks, striking out two of the three batters she face and then ended the game with a walk-off home run to center in the bottom half of the frame. Earlier in the week against Albany, Daggett went 2-for-3 with a double and knocked in all three of Vermont’s runs.