College Collage: Wahconah's Lavinio Leading League in at WNE
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Gabby Lavinio went five-for-eight with three RBIs on Thursday to lead the Western New England softball team to a double-header sweep of Smith College.
Lavinio, a 2013 graduate of Wahconah Regional High School and a shortstop for the Golden Bears (5-7), leads the Commonwealth Coast Conference with a .500 batting average this season.
She also leads her team in hits (21), home runs (three), doubles (five) and RBIs (10).
Wahconah graduate Brianna Herforth, a sophomore at Becker College, leads her team in hits (11), batting average (.344), RBIs (five) and doubles (two). On Tuesday, she drove in a run in the Hawks 2-1 win over Clark University as Becker improved to 4-8 this spring.
At Babson College, Mount Greylock graduate Caitie Benoit is hitting .346 with seven RBIs for the 6-6 Beavers. The Babson senior had 10 doubles and two home runs last year as a junior.
Hoosac Valley graduate Tanner Bird has a miniscule .71 ERA in 12.2 innings pitched for the Franklin Pierce baseball team this spring. Bird has 11 strikeouts against two walks and a 2-0 record, all in relief.
On Wednesday, Monument Mountain graduate John Kinne drove in three runs to help lead the Columbia University baseball team to a 13-3 win at West Point. Kinne, a senior third baseman for the Lions (4-11) is batting .241 with a team-best 12 RBIs this spring.
Monument Mountain’s Bobby Kinne, a sophomore at Vassar College, has six hits and five RBIs so far for the 3-6 Brewers.
There will be a PIttsfield-Taconic alumni baseball event this spring at Wahconah Park, but a mini-alumni day on Thursday at Boston’s Monan Park, home of the University of Massachusetts-Boston baseball team.
2014 Taconic graduates Steve Witkowski and and Alex Carusotto are pitchers for the UMass-Boston Beacons, who entertained Worcester State (6-7) and 2013 Taconic graduate Brian Bonacquisti.
UMass-Boston earned the 12-1 victory, though Bonacquisti had a pinch-hit single. For the season, he is hitting .308 with a pair of doubles.
For the Beacons (6-6), Witkowski has a 2.57 ERA, and Carusotto has an 11.25 ERA in three appearances (two starts).
In lacrosse, Wahconah’s Quinn Caesar is having a strong freshman campaign for the American International College men. Caesar is third on the team with nine goals in eight games and has started three times for the Yellowjackets (0-8)
Mount Greylock grad Brett McCormack has three goals and two assists for the St. Lawrence men, who are off to a 6-0 record this spring. His brother, Michael McCormack, a 2015 Mount Greylock graduate, has a goal an assist in five appearances for Middlebury College, which has started the year 4-2 -- one of a losses in overtime against St. Lawrence, who got a goal from Brett McCormack in the win.
Catching up on winter action …
Mount Greylock graduate Emily Kaegi was an honorable mention all conference selection for the Carleton College women’s track and field team. The Carleton sophomore placed sixth in the 3,000 meters at the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships.
Mount Greylock alumna Oona Wood and Hoosac Valley’s Elizabeth Provost helped the Holy Cross women’s track and field team place sixth at the Patriot League Indoor Championships. Provost is a senior thrower and Wood a senior long sprinter for the Crusaders
Lenox’s Scott Carpenter placed fourth in the mile run competing for Georgetown University at the Indoor IC4A championships in Boston.
Monument Mountain’s Jason Laramee competed for Springfield College at the ECAC Indoor Championships, where the Pride sophomore placed 15th with a height of 1.88 meters.
Drury’s Danielle Racette averaged 3.0 assists to just 1.6 turnovers per game for the Springfield College women’s basketball team. The junior guard started 26 of 27 games for the Pride (17-10) and led her team in assists and steals with 1.7 per game.
If you know a graduate of a local high school excelling on college playing fields who you would like to see featured in a future College Collage, let us know at sports@iberkshires.com.