June 4, 1997

Terp Softball Team Enjoys Fulfilling Season

The Maryland softball team, in only its third year of varsity competition, did what no other team in the Atlantic Coast Conference has done before. The Terps were crowned co-champions of the ACC, the only team to do so in only three years of competition. The Terps cruised their way to a share of the ACC Championship after seeing wins against Virginia and Georgia Tech, respectively, which would set up their matchup against Florida State for the title. The Terps handed the Seminoles a 2-1 defeat in the first-game of the double-elimination tournament after Maryland sophomore pitcher Kelly Shipman hit a two-run homerun in the bottom of the sixth inning to lift the Terps. In the second game, rain postponed the play of the game, forcing the game to be called and the two teams each earning a share of the conference crown.

Individually for the Terps, Shipman was named Co-MVP of the ACC Tournament and also collected First Team All-ACC honors. The Huntington, Md. native was also named First Team Mid-Atlantic Region and First Team All-ECAC. Senior Maureen Klee and sophomore Tricia Hunt were named to the all-tournament team, while freshman Cortney Madea was named First Team All-ACC.

The Terps finished the season with a 26-23 overall record, 3-5 in the ACC, which placed them third. Their third-place finish in the ACC also marked their highest conference finish in the program's history. The Terps earned the No. 1 seed at the ECAC Championship but a loss to Cornell and Harvard eliminated them from playing for the championship.

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