Tori Para was named team Most Valuable Player for Marywood University softball last season and she is well on her way to earning that distinction again.
Para is the team’s leading hitter and also has increased the amount of pitching she is doing, including picking up the team’s first win of the season in the circle during a spring trip to Winter Haven, Fla.
The junior plays third base and shortstop when she is not pitching.
One of the leaders of Pittston Area’s 2022 unbeaten, state championship team, Para hit .364 as a freshman and .336 as a sophomore for the Pacers while filling in with six innings pitched in three games.
This season, Para is leading Marywood in batting average (.458), hits (22), runs batted in (14), doubles (nine) and triples (two) while playing in every game. She has one of the team’s only two home runs, has been successful on both her stolen base attempts and has drawn four walks while striking out just three times.
Para will take a six-game hitting streak into Sunday’s doubleheader against Wilkes.
After going 4-for-7 Friday when Marywood was swept in a doubleheader at Cedar Crest, Para is 11-for-19 (.579) in the streak with seven runs, six RBI, four doubles, a triple and a home run.
Para has scored 11 times this season. Through 94 games, her career average is now up to .370 with 69 RBI, 67 runs, 34 doubles, seven triples and four home runs.
Marywood’s first win came March 10 in Winter Haven, Fla. when Para pitched the final four innings of an 8-6 win over Albertus Magnus. Para allowed eight hits, but yielded just one run by striking out four.
In six pitching appearances, including two starts, Para is 1-3 with a 7.82 earned run average. She has given up 21 runs (19 earned) on 31 hits and 12 walks while striking out 11.
