SPORTS

College Corner: VanDerveer, Hyland starring in softball

Jerry Carino
@njhoopshaven

If you need any further proof of just how good the high school softball in Central Jersey is, look to the college ranks.

Penn State softball standout Alyssa VanDerveer swings against Bucknell.

At Penn State University, former Hillsborough star Alyssa VanDerveer was named Big Ten Conference Player of the Week

At Rowan University, former East Brunswick ace Beth Ann Hyland is leading a 26-2 squad that has its sights set on the Division III World Series.

VanDerveer making a splash

The adjustment period to Division I softball was short for VanDerveer, a freshman who is batting .309 with a team-high nine home runs and 28 RBIs for the 21-20 Nittany Lions.

"The hardest part was realizing everyone has scouting reports on you," she said. "They always know what your weaknesses are. I went through two or three weeks where I was really struggling. They were only throwing at my weaknesses and it messed up my head."

She had gotten "pull-happy" and needed to drive the ball more. She adjusted accordingly, and the results were remarkable. In games against Bucknell and Wisconsin, the catcher went 6-for-10 with a double, three home runs, eight runs scored and 11 RBIs. She belted two grand slams in the process.

That earned a rare double honor from the Big Ten, which awarded her both Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week accolades.

"I was really happy, but it just means I have to work harder," VanDerveer said. "My teammates did a great job of getting on base, and I took advantage of that."

Hyland leading the way

Each year since arriving at Rowan, Hyland has increased her role on the pitching staff. Now a junior, she is 11-1 with a 0.87 earned run average and 67 strikeouts in 72.1 innings The Profs are 26-2 and ranked among the top 10 squads in Division III.

Rowan softball pitcher Beth Ann Hyland

"In travel and high school I was always the number one pitcher and I would pitch just about every game," she said. "When I came here it was completely different. I was one of five my freshman year and I only pitched about 25 innings. I was not used to that at all, so I became really selfless because I said, 'It's not all about me. It's about the team winning.' It changed my perspective on the game."

Fellow East Brunswick grad Shannon Costello, a senior starter in the outfield (hitting .293), convinced Hyland to attend Rowan after the latter initially committed to Messiah (Pa.). It worked out. Hyland helped the Profs reach the Super-Region round of the NCAA Tournament last year. The right-hander went 14-5 with a 1.05 ERA.

The goals are bigger this time around.

"We've wanted so badly to make the World Series and eventually win it," Hyland said. "This year we have the most talent we've had. It's possible we could win it all."

Odds and ends

For Quinnipiac men's tennis, juniors Luke Roser (Bernards) and Ben Teicher (Rutgers Prep) posted big efforts in a sweep of Fordham. Roser posted a 6-4, 6-3 triumph at third singles and Teicher prevailed 6-2, 6-1 at sixth singles. Unbeaten Quinnipiac sits in first place of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, which holds its tournament at Mercer County Park April 25-26.

Notre Dame baseball freshman pitcher Brandon Bielak (St. Joseph-Metuchen) allowed just one run, four hits and two walks while striking out five over 7.1 innings in a 4-1 triumph over seventh-ranked Florida State.

Competing for Rutgers men's track at the Princeton Invitational, Brendan Jaeger (Hunterdon Central) placed third in the 800 (1:55.08) and Tyrell Judson (Piscataway) took third in the triple jump (43-10.75).

Monmouth men's track senior Khari Bowen (Monroe) shattered the program record for 10,000 meters by 31 seconds with a fifth-place clocking of 30:11.73 at Saturday's Bucknell Bison Outdoor Classic. Bowen went through the first 5,000 meters in 15:14 before splitting 14:57 over the second half of the race.

College Corner runs weekly in the Courier News, Home News Tribune and on MyCentralJersey.com. Send tips to Jerry Carino: jcarino@gannett.com.