Troy, NY—The Sage Colleges' softball program has announced the 2011 team captains for the coming year. The Gators will open the season next week when they travel to Clermont, Florida to compete in the Spring Training Trip at the National Training Center.

Head Coach Lindsay Sawyer announced that the 2011 team captains are juniors Ashley Eberle (Delmar, NY/Bethlehem), and Meghan Welcome (Cohoes, NY/Cohoes).

Now in her fourth season with the Gators, Sawyer returns four players that earned letters a year ago and helped the 2010 team to an 8-26 record, while producing a 3-11 mark in Skyline Conference play. Last season, Sage had four student-athletes earn a selection to the 2010 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) girls got game/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete Team. Sage was also recognized by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) girls got game/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete Team as they combined for an impressive 3.192 team cumulative grade-point-average and ranked 69th in Division III for their accomplishments in the classroom.

Sage's 2011 lineup features considerable depth and a great deal of talent at many positions. This has the Gator coaching staff excited about the season.

Among the top returnees this season is junior outfielder Ashley Eberle.  A year ago, she batted .257 with eight doubles and a pair of homeruns, while starting all 34 contests. A consistent starter, Eberle has a .255 career batting average in 62 games played with 40 career hits and a .911 fielding percentage. A two-year team captain, Eberle has continued to turn up her play offensively. Sawyer will be looking for more extra-base hits from her this season, while defensively she will anchor the Gators' outfield with her play in center field.

Joining Eberle as a returning veteran is Meghan Welcome, another two-year captain for the team this spring. An every day starter at third base last year, Welcome batted .232 last season with eight extra-base hits and 18 RBI. She owns a .256 career batting average in two seasons of play with 65 starts in 67 games played and has tallied 15 extra-base hits during that time frame. With 12 career doubles to start the season, she stands in seventh place on the career list and could challenge the mark set last season by the team's MVP honoree, Kellie Jones with 36 doubles. A strong leader, who possesses a great arm and plays hard, Welcome will be a leader by example for the Gators this season.

The team's lone senior on the roster this season is veteran first baseman, Allison Bishop (Troy, NY/Lansingburgh). Bishop's experience and talent gives this edition of Gator softball a pair of upperclassmen at the corners.  As a junior, Bishop batted .240 with a .375 slugging percentage in 34 starts. With 78 career starts to her credit, Bishop's resume includes 65 hits, 19 doubles, and a .436 slugging percentage thus far.  She starts the 2011 season in third place in the Sage career double list, while also ranking fourth with her six career homeruns and should move into the top 10 in career games played as well.  Bishop has enjoyed success as a Gator and is looking to cap her career with a break-out season on offense as a senior.

Rounding out the lineup in the infield will be some new faces to the program with the addition of rookies Hillary Faas (East Greenbush, NY/Columbia), Katie Karkoski (Ticonderoga, NY/Ticonderoga),  and Chantal Ceragioli (New Paltz, NY/New Paltz).  Faas should replace 2009-2010 Skyline Conference NCAA Woman of the Year honoree and 2010 team MVP, Kellie Jones at short. She has a cannon arm and a powerful swing, which will help maker her an impact for the Gators early on in the season. She arrives at Sage after starring scholastically in three sports and earning acclaim as a three-sport team captain and two-time honorable mention pick in softball. She was a National Honor Society student at Columbia High School.

Karkoski is an extremely versatile player and may see time in several positions as she is fast with considerable athletic ability to her credit. She could see time at second base, but may find a home in the outfield, while also challenging the opposition with her strengths as a relief pitcher. A two-time All-State performer in softball, Karkoski also was an All-CVAC All-Star and three times led her Ticonderoga team to the Regional Finals and is another of Sage's National Honor Society performers.

Ceragioli is another multi-faceted player that gives Sage plenty of options and may also see time at first base and in the circle with her athletic ability. She was a three-sport performer at New Paltz High School and earned the team sportsmanship award in softball, while also starring in volleyball and basketball. Look for sophomore Emily Host (Gorham, NH/Gorham) to see time at second base as well. She has a solid bat and has a knack for finding a way to get on base. She comes to Sage after earning team MVP and captain honors at Gorham High.

Sawyer is blessed with more depth behind the plate this season with the addition of a pair of talented rookies. Two-sport student-athlete Gina Cerutti (Scotia, NY/Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons) as well as Tricia Gaulin (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls) give Sage options here. Gaulin should earn the title as the starting catcher as a rookie.  She possesses great softball instincts and will make an immediate impact for Sage both on offense and defense with her abilities.  Cerutti was a member of Sage's volleyball team this past fall and may split time here at the plate and in the outfield.

Look for another of Sage's two-sport student-athletes, Tiffany Bezio (Whitehall, NY/Whitehall) to be a contender in the outfield as well as a number of players with multiple skills as some could share time in the outfield and on the rubber this season. Bezio was a consistent performer with Sage's women's basketball team this winter and helped the Gators earn the program's first Skyline Conference post-season appearance.  She has a strong bat and a great arm and the ability to use her speed to stretch out base hits. An all-around performer, she excelled in soccer, basketball, and softball at Whitehall Junior and Senior High and was awarded team MVP honors in softball as well as the recipient of the Coaches' Award in 2009 and comes to Sage after a season at SUNY-Adirondack.

Rookie Lisa Eytel (North Bend, WA/Mount Si) will see time in the outfield, as will another of the Gators' two-sport standout performers, Kelsey Newberg (New Britain, CT/New Britain). Eytel was a valedictorian at Mount Si High School, where she also was a team captain and helped her team to several top showings in the league during her career.

A highly decorated high school player, Newberg established several pitching records during her scholastic career, including 452 innings pitched with 590 strikeouts and an ERA of 1.77 over a four year period. At the plate, Newberg is a speedy slapper who is as smart on the bases as she is fast.

Newberg will see time in the line-up on a day to day basis as a starting outfielder or pushing for the top spot as Sage's No. 1 pitcher. Challenging Newberg for the honor as No. 1 in the rotation will be junior Rachel Smith (Valatie, NY/Ichabod Crane). Smith controls the ball well and is smart about situational pitching, while also owning a great bat, making her the whole package. She arrives at Sage after playing at nearby Hudson Valley Community College after excelling in field hockey, swimming, and softball at Ichabod Crane High. Rookie Jackie Petteys (Fort Ann, NY/Hartford Central) will also be pushing for the top start for Sage this season as a newcomer.  She was a three-time team MVP at Hartford Central High School and a member of back-to-back league championship teams in 2009 and 2010.

With the talent of sophomore returning ace, sophomore Gabriella Skillen (Milford, NY/Milford Central), Sage has considerable depth, talent and decisions for pitching this year. Skillen worked in 115.2 innings in 2010 with 14 complete games and a 4.42 ERA in 23 appearances. She etched her name into several pitching single-season records as a rookie including games, innings pitched, complete games, and wins.

The 2011 Gators will face some tough competition on their spring training trip as they will take to the diamond eight times before returning to the confines of Robison Softball Field in Troy for their home opener on March 24 when they host Green Mountain College in a doubleheader at 3:00 p.m.

Sage opens the 2011 season on Monday, March 7 facing Penn State-Behrend (PA), and Case Western Reserve  (OH) in Florida. All told, Sage will face six quality non-league foes in Florida with additional competition coming from Lesley University (MA), Elizabethtown College (PA), Northwestern College (MN), and John Carroll University (OH).