To say that Ana Gold is a big hit for the 15th-ranked Duke softball team may be an understatement.
The 5-foot-7 sophomore third baseman from Ballston Spa and a Ballston Spa High graduate has hit 10 home runs for the Blue Devils in 29 games. As a freshman, she hit that same total in 53 games.
Gold had two homers in a 7-5 victory over rival North Carolina last Saturday, to help Duke post a 7-2 record in the strong Atlantic Coast Conference. She was named ACC Player of the Week on March 7 after leading the team to a 2-1 record against Notre Dame the previous week. She hit four homers on the week, three against the Fighting Irish, with 13 runs batted in. Her 10 homers lead the ACC and are tied for eighth in Division I.
Gold has started every game for the 24-5 Blue Devils and is hitting .337 (28-for-82) with six doubles and a triple to go along with her home runs. The leads the team in runs scored (35) and runs batted in (31).
Ella Payer (Saratoga Springs)
The 5-foot-9 defender is having another big season with the Bucknell women’s lacrosse team, the Bison standing at 4-3. The Saratoga High graduate leads the team in draw controls with 42 and ground balls with 15. She’s second in caused turnovers with eight. She had a season-high 10 draw controls in a 22-6 victory over St. Bonaventure on Feb. 5. Payer is a two-time Patriot League second-team choice and had 82 draw controls last season which ranks second in the team’s single-season record book.
Gillian Roeder (Delmar)
The MIT junior is looking forward to the outdoor track season after wrapping up the indoor season by earning All-American honors at the Division III NCAA Championship March 11 in Birmingham, Ala. The Bethlehem High graduate finished fifth out of 20 runners in the mile run with a time of 4:53.35. It was just short of her personal record in the event (4:52.78). Roeder…
Read the full article here