2008 All-Skyline Conference Softball Teams (PDF)
St. Joseph's College senior pitcher Jennifer Martinez swept three major awards, earning Skyline Conference Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year and Softball Championship Most Valuable Player honors as the conference announced its All-Skyline softball teams. Mount Saint Mary College freshman first baseman Jackie Governale was selected as Skyline Rookie of the Year while Farmingdale State head coach Chris Mooney and St. Joseph's head coach Al Sciangula shared Coach of the Year accolades.
Jennifer Martinez, who ranked as one of the top performers in the nation in Division III, was selected as the Skyline Conference Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, and Most Valuable Player of the Skyline Conference Softball Championship. Offensively, Martinez led the Skyline Conference and the nation with a .609 batting average. She also had 12 doubles, seven triples, four home runs and 31 runs batted in. Many teams chose not to pitch to Martinez, as she also compiled 37 walks for a .739 on-base percentage (also led the nation), reaching base nearly three out of every four times she came to the plate. She also struck out only two times in 138 plate appearances.
A three-time Skyline Conference Pitcher of the Year, Martinez has left her mark in the NCAA Division III softball record book. This season she compiled a 31-4 record with a 0.46 earned run average. In 230.1 innings of work, she allowed only 73 hits and 61 walks while striking out a Division III single-season record 505 batters. Opponents batted just .096 against Martinez. She led the nation in ERA, strikeouts per game (15.3) and fewest hits allowed per game (2.22). Martinez also finished second in the nation in victories.
Martinez was superb in two Skyline Conference tournament games. In 14 innings of work in the Skyline championship, she allowed just one hit and one unearned run with 35 strikeouts and two walks. In the semifinals against Mount Saint Mary, she tossed a no-hitter with 17 strikeouts and just one walk. Martinez was in top form against Polytechnic in the championship where she allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out 18 batters.
In a season of strong rookie performances in the Skyline Conference, Mount Saint Mary College freshman first baseman Jackie Governale stood out from the rest in earning Rookie of the Year honors. A starter in all 32 games for the Blue Knights this spring, Governale led the team and finished eighth in the conference with a .411 batting average. She also posted a team-leading 90 at-bats, 37 hits, 12 doubles, six triples, 21 runs batted in, 64 total bases and a .711 slugging percentage.
Farmingdale State College head coach Chris Mooney and St. Joseph's College head coach Al Sciangula shared Skyline Coach of the Year honors. Under Mooney's direction, Farmingdale State was one of the most improved teams in the nation. After going 11-14 in 2007, the Rams, with a lineup consisting largely of freshmen and sophomores, went 32-12. Farmingdale State advanced to the finals of the ECAC Metro Tournament. Sciangula's club was selected as the Skyline preseason favorite, but the Golden Eagles did more than live up to their billing. St. Joseph's set a school record for wins at 33-8 en route to the Skyline Conference champinship. The team also advanced to the NCAA Division III regional finals.
College of Mount Saint Vincent received the Skyline Conference Sportsmanship Award after displaying outstanding sportsmanship in softball.