2021 UConn Huskies softball team

2021 UConn Huskies softball
2021 UConn Huskies softball
Conference	Big East Conference
Record	22–20 (12–9 Big East)
Head coach	Laura Valentino (2nd season);
Home stadium	Connecticut Softball Stadium

The 2021 UConn Huskies softball team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2021 NCAA Division I softball season. The Huskies were led by Laura Valentino in her 2nd year as head coach, and played as part of the Big East Conference after joining the conference for the 2020–21 academic year. They play their home games at the newly rebuilt Connecticut Softball Stadium. UConn finished with a final record of 22–20, and finished third in the Big East with a conference record of 12–9. They reached the final of the Big East Tournament, but fell to Villanova.

2021 Big East Conference softball standings
	Conf						Overall
Team	W		L		T	PCT	W		L		T	PCT
DePaul ‍†‍‍	13	–	1	–	0	.929	22	–	11	–	0	.667
Villanova ‍‍‡‍^y	15	–	2	–	0	.882	36	–	14	–	0	.720
UConn ‍‍‍	12	–	9	–	0	.571	22	–	20	–	0	.524
Creighton ‍‍‍	8	–	7	–	0	.533	14	–	14	–	0	.500
Butler ‍‍‍	6	–	11	–	1	.361	17	–	21	–	1	.449
St. John's ‍‍‍	7	–	14	–	0	.333	10	–	20	–	0	.333
Seton Hall ‍‍‍	5	–	13	–	0	.278	9	–	23	–	0	.281
Providence ‍‍‍	4	–	13	–	1	.250	5	–	16	–	1	.250
Georgetown ‍‍‍	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–	0	–

‡ – Tournament champion As of May 21, 2021[1] Rankings from NFCA/USA Today

Previous season

As with other teams, the Huskies' 2020 season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic during March. UConn was off to a promising start, with a 16–5 record, the first time the Huskies finished with a winning record since 2009. No conference games were played prior to the early cancellation of the season.

Personnel

Roster

2021 Connecticut Huskies roster[2]

Pitchers

00 - Payton Kinney – Freshman
16 - Meghan O'Neil – Sophomore
17 - Marybeth Olson – Senior

Catchers

4 - Lauren Benson – Freshman
7 - Devon Casazza – Graduate Student
22 - Madisyn Estorga – Freshman

Outfielders

1 - Hollis Wivell – Junior
5 - Aziah James – Junior
19 - Reese Guevarra – Senior
20 - Ashley Esty – Junior
21 - Cali Jolley – Sophomore

Infielders

3 - Taylor Zatyk – Freshman
6 - Rileigh DeWeese – Freshman
8 - Briana Marcelino – Senior
9 - Olivia Sappington – Senior
11 - Mackenzie Fitzpatrick – Sophomore
15 - Sami Barnett – Junior
23 - Jana Sanden – Freshman
24 - Emily Piergustavo – Junior
31 - Makenzie Mason – Freshman
41 - Morgan Ash – Junior

Coaches

2021 connecticut huskies softball coaching staff[2]
Laura Valentino – Head coach – 2nd season Christie Novatin – Associate head coach – 2nd season Jessica Jacobson – Assistant coach – 2nd season Pattie Ruth Taylor – Volunteer assistant Coach – 2nd season

Schedule

Legend
	UConn win
	UConn loss
	Cancellation
Bold	UConn team member
*	Non-Conference game

2021 UConn Huskies softball game log[3]

Regular season

February
Date	Opponent	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	BE Record
Feb 12	vs Ohio*	St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field • Conway, SC (Kickin' Chicken Classic)	Cancelled
Feb 12	vs Tennessee*	St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field • Conway, SC (Kickin' Chicken Classic)	Cancelled
Feb 13	at Coastal Carolina*	St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field • Conway, SC (Kickin' Chicken Classic)	Cancelled
Feb 14	vs Tennessee*	St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field • Conway, SC (Kickin' Chicken Classic)	Cancelled
Feb 19	vs Northern Illinois*	FGCU Softball Complex • Fort Myers, FL (FGCU softball tournament)	W 7–1	Kinney (1–0)	Norred (0–1)	None		1–0
Feb 19	vs FIU*	FGCU Softball Complex • Fort Myers, FL (FGCU softball tournament)	W 4–3⁹	O'Neil (1–0)	Dunford (2–1)	None		2–0
Feb 20	vs FIU*	FGCU Softball Complex • Fort Myers, FL (FGCU softball tournament)	W 3–1	Kinney (2–0)	Dunford (2–2)	None		3–0
Feb 20	at Florida Gulf Coast	FGCU Softball Complex • Fort Myers, FL (FGCU softball tournament)	L 1–3	Mesiemore (1–3)	O'Neil (1–1)	None	178	3–1
Feb 21	at Florida Gulf Coast*	FGCU Softball Complex • Fort Myers, FL (FGCU softball tournament)	L 4–5¹¹	Mesiemore (2–3)	Kinney (2–1)	None		3–2
Feb 26	vs Ole Miss*	Getterman Stadium • Waco, TX	L 0–7	Bruce (1–0)	Kinney (2–2)	None		3–3
Feb 26	at No. 23 Baylor*	Getterman Stadium • Waco, TX	L 0–5	Mansell (1–0)	O'Neil (1–2)	None	300	3–4
Feb 27	vs Lamar*	Getterman Stadium • Waco, TX	W 7–0	O'Neil (2–2	Ruiz (1–2)	None	100	4–4
Feb 27	at No. 23 Baylor*	Getterman Stadium • Waco, TX	W 7–3	Kinney (3–2)	Rodoni (1–2)	None	300	5–4
Feb 28	at No. 7 Texas*	Red and Charline McCombs Field • Austin, TX	L 2–16⁵	White (2–0)	Kinney (3–3)	None	376	5–5

March
Date	Opponent	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	BE Record
Mar 5	vs Elon*	Williams Field at Anderson Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC (UNC Tournament)	W 7–3	O'Neil (3–2)	Nemeth (0–2)	None	40	6–5
Mar 5	at North Carolina*	Williams Field at Anderson Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC (UNC Tournament)	L 1–3⁸	Pickett (5–2)	Kinney (3–4)	None	80	6–6
Mar 6	vs No. 17 South Carolina*	Williams Field at Anderson Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC (UNC Tournament)	L 6–7⁸	Betenbaugh (4–0)	Kinney (3–5)	None	40	6–7
Mar 7	vs Elon*	Williams Field at Anderson Stadium • Chapel Hill, NC (UNC Tournament)	L 0–1⁸	Quinn (3–3)	Kinney (3–6)	None	40	6–8
Mar 7	at No. 14 Duke*	Duke Softball Stadium • Durham, NC	L 0–7	St. George (7–0)	Kinney (3–7)	None		6–9
Mar 13	Georgetown	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	Cancelled
Mar 13	Georgetown	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	Cancelled
Mar 14	Georgetown	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	Cancelled
Mar 17	at Rhode Island*	URI Softball Complex • Kingston, RI	W 10–7	O'Neil (4–2)	Lynchard (0–4)	None		7–9
Mar 20	at Creighton	Creighton Sports Complex • Omaha, NE	L 1–2	Boyd (5–4)	Kinney (3–8)	None		7–10	0–1
Mar 20	at Creighton	Creighton Sports Complex • Omaha, NE	W 9–1	O'Neil (5–2)	Santa Cruz (2–2)	None	143	8–10	1–1
Mar 21	at Creighton	Creighton Sports Complex • Omaha, NE	W 10–5	Kinney (4–8)	Boyd (5–5)	None	102	9–10	2–1
Mar 24	Central Connecticut*	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 10–2⁵	Kinney (5–8)	Houghton (1–1)	None	81	10–10
Mar 27	Butler	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 6–1	Kinney (6–8)	Ricketts (6–5)	None	81	11–10	3–1
Mar 27	Butler	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 4–2	Kinney (7–8)	Graves (3–4)	None	81	12–10	4–1
Mar 28	Butler	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 1–0⁵	Kinney (8–8)	Griman (0–2)	None	60	13–10	5–1

April
Date	Opponent	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	BE Record
Apr 2	at DePaul	Cacciatore Stadium • Chicago, IL	L 1–5	Halvorson (4–3)	Kinney (8–9)	None	50	13–11	5–2
Apr 2	at DePaul	Cacciatore Stadium • Chicago, IL	L 5–6	Gomez (2–0)	O'Neil (5–3)	None	50	13–12	5–3
Apr 3	at DePaul	Cacciatore Stadium • Chicago, IL	L 2–4	Dalgarn (8–1)	Kinney (8–10)	None	35	13–13	5–4
Apr 10	at Providence	Glay Field • Providence, RI	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 10	at Providence	Glay Field • Providence, RI	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 11	at Providence	Glay Field • Providence, RI	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 13	UMass*	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 14	at Fordham*	Bahoshy Softball Complex/Murphy Field • Bronx, NY	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 21	Seton Hall	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 21	Seton Hall	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 22	Seton Hall	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	Postponed due to COVID-19 protocols
Apr 27	at Providence	Glay Field • Providence, RI	W 6–4	O'Neil (6–3)	Grifone (1–5)	None	50	14–13	6–4
Apr 27	at Providence	Glay Field • Providence, RI	W 8–5	Olson (1–0)	Murphy (0–1)	None	50	15–13	7–4
Apr 28	at Providence	Glay Field • Providence, RI	W 4–1	O'Neil (7–3)	Alvarez (2–6)	None	60	16–13	8–4

May
Date	Opponent	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	BE Record
May 1	St. John's	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 4–3	O'Neil (8–3)	Brown (4–8)	None	113	17–13	9–4
May 1	St. John's	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 9–1⁵	O'Neil (9–3)	Saric (1–5)	None	113	18–13	10–4
May 2	St. John's	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	L 2–6	Kmett (5–5)	Kinney (8–11)	Brown (2)	113	18–14	10–5
May 5	Seton Hall	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 3–1	O'Neil (10–3)	Smith (2–9)	Kinney (1)		19–14	11–5
May 6	Seton Hall	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	L 1–2	Carr (4–8)	Olson (1–1)	None	77	19–15	11–6
May 6	Seton Hall	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 6–2	Kinney (9–11)	Smith (2–10)	O'Neil (1)	77	20–15	12–6
May 8	at Villanova	Villanova Softball Complex • Villanova, PA	L 0–1	Rauch (17–3)	O'Neil (10–4)	None	40	20–16	12–7
May 8	at Villanova	Villanova Softball Complex • Villanova, PA	L 6–7	Kennedy (6–3)	O'Neil (10–5)	None	40	20–17	12–8
May 9	at Villanova	Villanova Softball Complex • Villanova, PA	L 7–9	Pellicano (3–1)	O'Neil (10–6)	None	40	20–18	12–9

Post-Season

Big East Tournament
Date	Opponent	Seed	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	BET Record
May 13	(2) Villanova	(3)	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 4–3	Kinney (10–11)	Kennedy (6–4)	O'Neil (2)	113	21–18	1–0
May 14	(4) Butler	(3)	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	W 4–1	Kinney (11–11)	Graves (6–5)	None	113	22–18	2–0
May 15	(2) Villanova	(3)	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	L 1–5	Rauch (20–3)	Olson (1–2)	None	113	22–19	2–1
May 15	(2) Villanova	(3)	Connecticut Softball Stadium • Storrs, CT	L 1–6	Amarillas (7–3)	O'Neil (10–7)	None	113	22–20	2–2

Rankings from NFCA Poll, Tournament seeds in parentheses.

References

"Big East Softball Standings". BigEast.com. Big East Conference. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
2021 Softball Roster. UConn Huskies. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
2021 Softball Schedule. UConn Huskies. Retrieved March 24, 2021.

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[1] "Big East Softball Standings". BigEast.com. Big East Conference. Retrieved May 16, 2021.

[roster-2] 2021 Softball Roster. UConn Huskies. Retrieved March 24, 2021.

[3] 2021 Softball Schedule. UConn Huskies. Retrieved March 24, 2021.

UConn Huskies softball
Venue	Connecticut Softball Stadium (1975–present)
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
College World Series appearances in italics