(Photo courtesy of Esposito Family via Patch.com) |
The former Coginchaug Blue Devils softball star is playing Div. II softball for the Skyhawks
Less than a year removed from leading the Coginchaug Blue Devils softball team to a state championship, Middlefield's Lauren Esposito has taken her game to the next level.
Esposito, who earned 2012's Shoreline Conference Player of the Year, is a pitcher and first baseman for the Stonehill Skyhawks, a Divison II school about two hours north of here, in Easton, Mass.
"Personally, I couldn't be happier at Stonehill College," Esposito said. "I chose Stonehill for its campus atmosphere and student-athlete ideals, but it's been so much more for me. I love my professors, teammates and coaches and I feel that Stonehill is the perfect fit and will help my attain all my goals and aspirations."
This week, the freshman and her Stonehill teammates are playing 12 games at the Clermont National Training Center in Clemont, FL, before returning to New England to play Southern Connecticut State University on Thursday, March 14.
"There's a big transition to the college game from high school. The practices are so much more intense. The game is so much faster," Esposito said. "The conditioning and workout sessions are hard work and were grueling in the beginning, but once my body got used to it, I was fine. I feel stronger and faster."
Last fall, Esposito was 2-1-1 for the Skyhawks, allowing just four runs in 21 innings. She batted .358 in 32 at-bats.
"We have a full time pitching coach. It's just awesome. Coach Jamie says you never stop learning. She taught me this awesome new pitch, a drop curve. I love it. As a lefty, it's really hard on righty batters, it's tough for them to lay off it," she said.
"Coach LeGrice (Stonehill head coach) really likes my speed, so they are working with me to play outfield when I'm not pitching or playing some first base. I never played any outfield at any level, Little League, travel ball or high school so it's a new adventure. I love it.
"I look at it this way, anything that keeps me on the field is a good thing. I've also been working hard on my slapping and drag bunting as one of my main jobs when batting will be to get on base, just like at Coginchaug."
