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B-CC Softball gets regional honor
June 30, 2005
Bethune-Cookman College softball coach Laura Watten has been named the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s Southeast Region Coach of the Year.
Watten and her assistants Alissa Smith and Mike Pace guided the Wildcats to a 49-19 record and a berth in the NCAA Super Regionals, where they fell to the University of Texas. After losing in the finals of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament, B-CC garnered the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s first-ever at-large bid to the NCAA tournament and put it to good use, beating host Florida and South Florida twice for a stunning victory in the Gainesville (Fla.) regional. B-CC fell to Texas in the Super Regionals the following weekend
The Wildcats’ 2005 regular season featured a 23-game winning streak (including seven consecutive shutouts) and victories over Florida, Northwestern, Virginia Tech and UMass. B-CC finished the season ranked 18th nationally in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches? poll and was the only Florida team to crack the top 25.
“It’s a great honor that says a lot about what we were able to accomplish this season,” Watten said. “It’s very tough to gain respect in the softball community and the collegiate sports community. To be recognized by your peers like this is huge for our program.”
The softball team’s success gave Bethune-Cookman College -- with an enrollment of approximately 2,900 students -- two women’s teams that finished in the top 20 nationally. During the fall, B-CC’s bowling team finished fourth at the national tournament.
“Our goal has become to field teams that can compete at the nationally level,” said Athletic Director Lynn Thompson. “To have two squads ranked in the top 20 is proof positive that our efforts are being recognized and that our goals are obtainable.”
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