Oct. 12, 2006
EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - Marisa DeStasio, a 2005 graduate and four-year starter at Binghamton, has joined the Lafayette softball program as the top assistant under head coach Jeanine Gunther.
DeStasio was named All-America East in 2003 as a leftfielder and played a number of positions for the Bearcats. Following her collegiate career, she was assistant softball coach at MacMurray College, an NCAA Division III school in Jacksonville, Ill. last year.
"Marisa has a lot of experience, playing at a program like Binghamton and competing in the America East Conference, and has continued to play in the summer," Gunther said. "She is focused on a career in coaching and brings enthusiasm to our program as we continue our progress to our goal of winning the Patriot League championship."
DeStasio has played for the Lehigh Valley Gators, a team comprised of Division I players from the Big East, Patriot League, Colonial Athletic Association and America East Conference, for the past five summers. She has professional experience in events management, serving on the staff at MacMurray and performing an internship while at Binghamton. She was also a park counselor for the Bethlehem Parks and Recreation Department for four summers (2001-04).
Lauren Belowich, a second team All-Patriot League selection as a pitcher last year, will also join the coaching staff as a volunteer assistant while she is pursuing a Master's degree in Secondary Education with a concentration in Mathematics at Lehigh.
Belowich holds Lafayette's single-season strikeout record, which she set with 98 as a sophomore, and had a 10-11 record with a 3.05 earned run average and 84 strikeouts last spring. She was also the Leopards' second-leading hitter, posting a .333 batting average with 47 hits, including five home runs, and a team-best 30 runs batted in.
Lafayette went 20-28 last spring and returns all but two starters for the 2007 campaign. The Leopards made the Patriot League Tournament for the first time in six seasons, earning the program's highest ever seeding at No. 2. The team finished the year tied for second in the final league standings with a 10-10 mark. Gunther was named Patriot League Coach of the Year in her first season at the helm of the Leopards.
