Salem, N.H.'s Katie Bettencourt finally got her chance this spring to play full time on the UMass Amherst softball team. The reward was Atlantic 10 Conference co-Player of the Year honor.
Bettencourt and Fordham's Beckah Wiggins shared the league's top honors.
Bettencourt, after seeing just seven at-bats as a freshman in 2009, started every game in right field for UMass in 2010 and quickly established herself as one of the conference's top hitters, hitting .379 on the season with 11 doubles, seven home runs, and 30 RBIs. Her batting average ranked second in the A-10, behind her teammate, Normandin.
In A-10 play, Bettencourt was the conference's top hitter, batting .500 (25-50) with five homers and 20 RBIs in 18 games.
Plourde, the NCAA's strikeouts leader (501), enters the A-10 championship with a 1.03 ERA and a league-best 36 wins. The Bristol, Conn., native was unbeaten in league play (16-0) and boasted a league-leading 0.75 earned-run average in A-10 action.
Bettencourt is 14th UMass player to earn A-10 Player of the Year honors and second in a row after Normandin last season.
Bettencourt, after seeing just seven at-bats as a freshman in 2009, started every game in right field for UMass in 2010 and quickly established herself as one of the conference's top hitters, hitting .379 on the season with 11 doubles, seven home runs, and 30 RBIs.
In A-10 play, Bettencourt was the conference's top hitter, batting .500 (25-50) with five homers and 20 RBIs in 18 games.
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