Teams: Softball: Press Releases

Monday, April 28, 2008

HOT BAT LANDS CARA HOVHANESSIAN NESCAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS

MEDFORD -- Junior Cara Hovhanessian (Farmington, CT) of the Tufts University softball team didn't feel right all last season. She had hit .336 as a freshman at Tufts in 2006, and her 35 RBI that year were second-most on the team. Sluggish from the start of her sophomore season until she went to see a doctor, she tailed off to .226 and appeared in just 23 of 44 games after playing regularly in '06. She was diagnosed with mono, a condition that had pre-existed for weeks, and she shut it down for the season in late April.

Healthy again this spring and playing regularly as the team's designated player, Hovhanessian is hitting in the middle of the Tufts line-up at a .393 clip with four bombs and 25 RBI. After an outstanding weekend  (Apr. 25-26) during a Tufts sweep at Bates College in NESCAC East Division play, Hovhanessian has added a New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Player of the Week award to her comeback season.

The Jumbos were 4-1 last week, including a split at Endicott College on Monday, to improve to 25-8 overall. In five starts, Hovhanessian hit .556 (10/18) with 11 RBI and five runs scored. She totaled 14 bases, including her fourth home run, for a .778 slugging percentage.

Hovhanessian had hits in both games at Endicott, but exploded offensively at Bates. On Friday afternoon, she led Tufts to an 8-0, five-inning win by going 3 for 3 with 4 RBI and a run scored. She hit a two-run single in the first and a two-run double in the fourth to account for half of the team's runs. After 2 for 3 with two runs scored production in Saturday's first game of a double-header (7-3 win), she led Tufts' 19-0 win in game two by going 3 for 5 with a home run, 6 RBI and 2 runs scored. She produced runs with a ground out, a two-run single and a three-run home run. In the three-game series, she totaled 8 hits in 11 at bats (.727) with 10 RBI and 5 runs scored.

The NESCAC award is the fourth of the season for the Jumbos, with junior 3B Samantha Kuhles (Somerville, NJ) and pitchers Stefanie Tong (Burlingame, CA) and Izzie Santone (Madison, CT) previously honored. Hovhanessian currently ranks seventh in NESCAC with a .607 slugging percentage and is 10th with a .447 on-base percentage.

Tufts finishes its regular-season with a double-header at Springfield College on Tuesday before opening NESCAC Tournament play on Friday at Wesleyan University against Williams College.

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