Brandeis Magazine

The softball team reached the ECAC Division III New England tournament as the second seed, putting head coach Jessica Johnson’s team in the postseason for the fifth year in a row. The Judges won their first two games of the tournament over Elms College, 9-1, and the University of New England, 5-1. After falling to host and top-seeded Keene State College, 11-1, in the winner’s bracket, Brandeis met UNE again in an elimination game. Because of inclement weather, the contest between the Judges and Nor’Easters was called in the seventh inning, with the scored tied at 7-7, and the two teams were declared co-runners-up to Keene State.

Coach Pete Varney’s baseball team went 24-19, tallying the most wins since its 2002 season and claiming the second seed in the ECAC tournament. The Judges were upset by Anna Maria College, 8-5, in the first round. John McGrath ’11 earned first-team All-University Athletic Association honors after leading the team with seven wins and a 3.99 earned run average. Chris Ferro ’13 was a second-team All-UAA selection as catcher for the second year in a row.

Mike Kotch will lead the swimming and diving programs when they resume varsity status in 2012–13. He succeeds Jim Zotz, who led the program for 32 years before being named an assistant athletic director in 2010. Kotch comes to Brandeis from Regis College, where he developed 19 school-record holders and helped develop a men’s program that had only two student-athletes when he joined the program. Kotch also serves as the treasurer of the New England Intercollegiate Swimming and Diving Association

At the end of the spring semester, two Brandeis student-athletes were honored as Capital One Academic All-Americans by the College Sports Information Directors Association for their performances on and off the field of competition. Marianne Specker ’12 was a first-team selection for softball, while Paul Norton ’11 was a third-team choice for men’s track and cross-country. Specker is a psychology major who carries a 3.92 grade-point average and was a second-team All-UAA selection as a designated player. Norton graduated summa cum laude with highest honors in music and economics and was a cross country All-American and the 2010 UAA Indoor Track and Field Most Outstanding Performer.