Lancer Named ESPN’s CT Softball Player of the Year

Waterford softball standout Kelli Connors has been named ESPN’s Gatorade Softball Player of the Year for Connecticut.

The player of the year is selected based off of three factors, according to ESPN: athletic production and impact in the 2011-12 season, high academic achievement and exemplary personal character. Connors is a senior at Waterford High School and

The Achievements

Connors led the Lancers to their and to the semifinals of the Class M state championship. Connors this season was 20-1 with a 0.87 ERA and had 151 strikeouts in 137 innings heading into the Class M semifinal game, and hit .379 with one home run and 19 RBI, according to ESPN.

Connors was a member of Waterford’s 2009 and 2010 Class M state championship teams, and complied a 69-5 pitching record for her career, according to The Day. She also is a volleyball standout, and has a 3.04 GPA, according to ESPN.

“She’s a hard-working kid,” Fitch Softball Coach Kate Peruzzotti told ESPN. “What I admire most about her is how well she’s done over the past four years - just the growth has been amazing, how she’s dominated in the circle over her entire high school career. It says a lot about her. She’s been remarkable.”

Connors also showed exemplary character by donating her time as a youth softball instructor and volunteering as a physical education teacher’s assistant at , according to ESPN.