Amanda Genovese ’15 ran like a player possessed in her second campaign. The Judges’ centerfielder was the UAA Rookie of the Year in 2012 and was co-MVP of the conference tournament in her sophomore campaign. Coach Jessica Johnson’s lead-off hitter topped all UAA players in hits, average and –most significantly – stolen bases during the week in Florida. Genovese didn’t let up for the rest of the season, setting the single-season record of 33 steals just past the half-way mark of the season in an April 7 sweep of Lasell.
Not content with one record, she set her sights on breaking Brandeis’s career record before the midway point of her career. She did just that in an April 28 split with Eastern Connecticut State. Genovese’s 49th steal of the season came in the first game, a 4-0 loss. In the fourth inning of game two, her legs produced the winning runs and the record-breaking thefts. With two runners in scoring position, Genovese’s speed forced the shortstop to hurry her throw, allowing her to reach safely and both Brandeis base-runners to cross the plate. Genovese’s steal of second was her 50th of the campaign and 72nd of her career and she went on to take third for steals 51 and 73, breaking the mark of Melisa Cagar ’11.
Genovese finished the season with a whopping 57 steals – fourth all-time in Division III – and 79 for her career. In her 42 games for the Judges, there were only two in which she did not record either a hit or a stolen base. Not surprisingly, after leading all NCAA players in steals, she earned first-team All-America honors, only the second All-American in Brandeis softball history and the first first-teamer.
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BEGINNING: Spital opens season with a goal against MIT in 1-0 win