INDIAPOLIS, Ind. – Anchored by senior infielders Holli Davis (3B, Lake Havasu, Ariz.) and Ali Perantoni (SS, Miami, Fla.), the Barry University softball team was named the 2008 NCAA Division II statistical champion for team fielding percentage, announced by the NCAA.
In 52 games, the Buccaneer defense combined for a .978 team fielding percentage. In 357.1 innings and 1,562 chances, the Buccaneers recorded 1,072 putouts and 456 assists while committing only 34 team errors. Barry finished just one percentage point ahead of Augusta State (.977) and SIU-Edwardsville (.977) respectively to claim the 2008 Division II fielding percentage title.
Davis led the Buccaneer defense with 116 defensive assists, while anchoring the hot corner, while Perantoni followed with 93 assists and helped turn 16 double plays in the middle infield. Brittany Anderson (Jr., Chandler, Ariz.) led the Bucs with 344 total putouts and a .997 fielding percentage as the primary backstop and threw out 44 percent of attempted base runners. Natalie Heeley (Jr., Glendale, Ariz.) played both first and third and recorded 244 putouts and 26 assists.
The Bucs .978 fielding percentage in 2008 set a school record surpassing the previous record .967 fielding percentage set in 2003 and 2007.
Behind the Bucs’ stellar defense, Barry finished with a 44-8 overall record and advanced to the NCAA Division II national tournament for the fourth time in school history after winning the NCAA South Region Tournament.
