SU Assistant Helps Great Britain to Gold Medal
3/29/2004 1:09:48 PM | Softball
ATHENS, Greece - Syracuse assistant coach Rosie Leutzinger helped the Great Britain National Team to the gold medal at the Olympic Softball Test Event held at the Olympic Softball Stadium in Athens, Greece on March 25-28. Leutzinger batted .333, helping Great Britain to a 5-1 record, including a 3-0 win against Greece in the title game.
Leutzinger also stole three bases and scored four runs while batting leadoff for the British. She also recorded a .933 fielding percentage in the six games.
The squad went 3-0 in preliminary play, defeating the Czech Republic, 5-2, Greece, 2-1, and Russia, 1-0. The team lost to the Greek squad, 3-1, in the semifinals, but came back to defeat the Czechs, 7-3, to earn a berth in the gold medal game. The British team won the rematch with Greece to earn the championship.
Leutzinger scored the winning run in three of Great Britain’s five victories, including the championship game. She started a three-run rally in the sixth inning with a single and later came around to score the first run. Leutzinger also tallied the game-winner against Russia, recording a walk and a stolen base. She plated the only run of the game on a wild pitch.
Leutzinger, in her first season as an assistant with the Orangewomen, played softball for the University of Washington from 1997-2000. As a shortstop, her team went to the Women's College World Series all four years. Leutzinger won third-team All-American honors as a senior. She was an All Pac-10 performer from 1998-2000 and and All-Academic Pac-10 selection in her final three years.
Syracuse begins the home portion of its schedule with its first BIG EAST games of the season on Friday, April 2. The Orangewomen host Boston College beginning at 3 p.m. at the SU Softball Stadium.
