Little Falls, NJ (5/13/06) – Led by Most Valuable Player ATHANASIA TOTARO , the Montclair State softball team pulled off a rare three-win sweep on the final day to capture the ECAC Division III South Softball Championship at the MSU Softball Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The top-seeded Red Hawks knocked off No. 4 seed Kean University in the first game and then defeated No. 2 seed College Misericordia twice by the identical 5-4 margins to win its seventh consecutive ECAC crown.

Totaro was named the Most Valuable Player for the third straight year as she picked up all three wins on the day logging 16 innings or work to close out her brilliant career. It marked the second time in the ECAC Tournament and third time overall that Montclair State (33-13) needed to win three times on the last day of a tournament as it achieved the feat in 2001 ECAC Championship when it won the second of its seven championships. MSU also won three games on the final day of the 1992 NCAA Division III At-Large Regional to advance to the Division III Championship in Pella, Iowa.

Freshman shortstop JENNIFER JIMENEZ belted a home run in each game for Montclair State. Jimenez finished the year with a school-record 17 home runs while driving in 53 runs - second highest single-season total in school history.

In the championship game, Totaro (17-6) picked up her 17 th win of the season the 53 rd and final of her career as she allowed five hits and four runs (one earned), striking out three and walking one. Montclair helped out Totaro by scoring twice in the first inning, which was aided by two Misericorida errors. Totaro and KELLY KARP reached on errors and the two came around as JACKIE FERRANTI smacked a double down the left field line.

MSU would increase the lead with a run in the third as MAUREEN SHOCKLEY scored on an error. The Cougars would match the run in their half of the inning as Kristi Devens lofted a sacrifice fly. Montclair answered with two in the top of the third as Jimenez connected for her 17 th home run of the season and CHERYL BODAK plated Ferranti with an RBI single for a 5-1 lead.

Misericordia would respond with three runs in the bottom half of the inning as the Cougars took advantage of two MSU miscues. Jen Gehman doubled home two runs and Kirsten Lazorka followed with an RBI double to bring Misericordia within 5-4, but that would be as close as the Cougars would get as Totaro retired the next 10 hitters.

In the bottom of the seventh, Totaro walked Devens to open the inning0. After an out, Erin Moravec bunted for a base hit to put the winning run on base. However, Totaro would escape the jam with a pair of pop ups as Montclair State roared back from its first loss on Saturday to take the championship.

Devens (21-10) took the loss as she allowed 10 hits and struck out one. Lazorka had two hits for the Cougars while Jimenez was 3-for-4 with Shockley and Ferranti each collecting two hits.

Montclair State forced the deciding game as it edged Misericordia, 5-4 in nine innings.

Tied at 3-3 in extra innings, Misericordia took a one-run lead in the eighth inning as the Cougars loaded the bases before Laura Mushinski was hit by a pitch to force home the go-ahead run. Down to its final three outs, Montclair would answer as Crystal Dahlhaus began the inning at second under the tie-breaker rule and went to third on a sacrifice by Shockley. Totaro then tied the game as she lifted a sacrifice fly to right field.

After Misericordia failed to score in the top of the ninth, the Red Hawks won the game in the bottom of the frame as MEGAN TANTUM doubled home Karp with the game-winning run.

Totaro pitched the final two innings in relief to pick up the win. CAROLYN MCCREA went the first seven innings allowing seven hits and three runs with four strikeouts. Devens took the loss despite and 8-plu innings performance with five strikeouts and one walk. She gave up six hits and five runs (three earned).

Mushinski had two RBI for the Cougars while Gehman was 3-for-3 and Lazorka was 2-for-3. Tantum had two hits for MSU with Jimenez going 1-for-3, including a two-run home run in the first inning.

Montclair State's long day began as the Red Hawks eliminated Kean University, 6-3 in the morning. The Red Hawks avenged three losses to Kean this season, including a 4-3 defeat in the first game of the tournament on Saturday.

This time, Montclair jumped out early as it scored three times each in the second and third innings. Jimenez led off the second with a solo homer and Shockley delivered a run-scoring single to centerfield for a 2-0 lead. Totaro would bring in the final run with a base hit through the left side. In the third, Bodak brought home a run with a single and JENNA WEISS added an RBI triple for a 5-0 advantage before WHITNEY DRIVER knocked in the final run with an infield single.

Kean cut the lead to 6-2 in the fourth on a two-run homer by pitching counterpart Kristen Hennings. The Cougars would add another run in the fifth on an RBI double by Kelly Aleksandrich to pull within three, but Totaro would retire six of the final seven batters she would face as Montclair advanced to the championship round.

Totaro struck out four and walked three as she gave up five hits and three runs. Hennings took the loss (8-11).

Jesse Buchanan was 2-for-4 for Kean while Jimenez, Ferranti, Weiss and Driver each had two hits as MSU collected 13 in the game.