Jackie (Shedlock) Kapusta ’05 Selected to 2019 GNAC Hall of Fame Class
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (June 28, 2019) – Former Western New England softball standout Jackie (Shedlock) Kapusta '05 has been selected for induction in the 2019 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Hall of Fame class, the conference office announced on Thursday.
Shedlock will be enshrined along with seven other former GNAC student-athletes at an induction dinner on Wednesday, August 7 at the Hilton Garden Inn Logan Airport in East Boston, Mass.
Along with Shedlock, the 2019 GNAC Hall of Fame Class includes Ray Askew of Albertus Magnus College men's basketball, Iman (Davis) Barbosa of Emmanuel College women's basketball, Lamonte Thomas of Johnson & Wales University (RI) men's basketball, Jose Guitian of Lasell College men's basketball, Josh McElroy of Norwich University men's soccer, Aaron Dufoe of Rivier University men's soccer & men's basketball, and Michael Maguire of Suffolk University baseball.
Shedlock receives this honor less than two years after being inducted into Western New England's Downes Athletic Hall of Fame in the 2017 class. She is also a member of the Downes Hall of Fame as a member of the 2003 softball team, which was inducted in 2008.
One of the most dominant pitchers in the history of the Western New England softball program, Shedlock ranks in the top-3 of almost every career pitching category, including first in batting average against (.165), second in strikeouts (576) and earned run average (0.88) and third in wins (60). Shedlock's ERA and strikeout total also rank second in GNAC history.
She was a key contributor as a sophomore in 2003 during the Golden Bears' run to the College World Series, going 9-1 with 0.72 ERA while limiting opposing batters to a .158 average. Shedlock followed that up with an even more impressive campaign as a junior in 2004, as she went 20-6 with a 0.94 ERA and earned Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division III Northeast Region first team, All-Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) first team and GNAC Pitcher of the Year accolades.
Shedlock capped her collegiate career in 2005 by becoming Western New England's first female All-American in any sport with her selection to the Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division III third team. She also collected a pair of regional honors and repeated as the GNAC Pitcher of the Year after winning a single-season program record 23 games (23-5 overall) and posting a 0.95 ERA with 239 strikeouts in 154.2 innings pitched.
A three-time All-Conference and two-time All-Region performer, Shedlock was a member of Western New England teams that went 138-33-1 (.805), won four consecutive GNAC championships and appeared in the NCAA Tournament each year during her four-year career.
Western New England softball competed in the GNAC for eight seasons from 2000-07, before joining the Commonwealth Coast Conference for the 2007-08 campaign. The Golden Bears won the GNAC title five times during that eight-year span and posted one runner-up finish.
