The softball program has been a virtual revolving door of great players over the last decade, having boasted eight of the last 10 winners of the NESCAC Player of the Year award.
Perhaps none of them, however, combined their skills at the plate with smoothness in the field the way Casey Sullivan did.
Indeed, over her four-year career, Tufts' graduating senior captain proved there was nothing she couldn't do on a softball field. She leaves the program as not only one of its most prolific hitters — her 31 career home runs rank as second all-time in school history — but as possibly its greatest defender.
"I think she probably surprised me equally on both sides," coach Cheryl Milligan said. "I thought she would probably hit in the middle of our lineup somewhere, maybe in the two-spot because she definitely has some speed. But I didn't know how far she was going to come along power-wise, and I didn't know she was going to hit .600 over the course of a weekend.
"I do think that she has surprised us on both sides of the ball in that her hitting has been as good as we could have ever imagined," she continued. "If there was ever any question of how good she would become at the beginning, she certainly has become great. And defensively, as good as we thought she was, she has been amazing beyond that."
Perhaps all her incredible success stems from an unparalleled will to succeed, one that she cultivated at the Suffield Academy in Connecticut under the tutelage of coach Wayne Patterson.
"I think Casey has a competitive desire that is pretty much unequaled," Patterson said. "For a lot of people, that is a negative thing because they can't back it up. But Casey can back it up — she will get the big hit, make the big play, take the team on her shoulders. But all that being said, she is a great teammate, and she can get people to come along with her for the ride.
"She is a really, really competitive person," he continued. "She does not like to lose; she doesn't accept losing. It is that desire and drive to win that has not only made her successful in athletics but has also made her very successful and will make her very successful in her future endeavors."
Whatever the reasons, Sullivan has left a distinguished legacy, one that is defined first and foremost with incredible talent at shortstop.
‘I can't believe she just made that play'
In a program that has been well known for big bats and amazing offense, Sullivan stands out for another shining attribute: her defensive prowess. This season was no exception. Manning the shortstop position for every inning of Tufts' 35 games this season, Sullivan made just four errors in 157 chances on her way to NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year honors.
"I just have always loved playing defense," said Sullivan, who also earned the conference's Player of the Year award. "It has been my favorite part of playing softball, and it has been my favorite part of every sport I have ever played. I think that defense is where championships are won, and I think defense is the key to winning."
Milligan knew what she was getting when Sullivan came to Tufts. While leading Suffield Academy to an 18-0 mark and the Class B Western New England title in 2006, Sullivan began displaying some of the talent that would lead to her immense success at Tufts.
"I remember writing some notes on her to just kind of help us in the recruiting process for people in the department, and I remember saying she has one of the quickest releases as a shortstop that we have seen and she would be a huge asset to our defense," Milligan said. "No matter where you put her, she is going to be a great defensive player. And I think she had shown throughout her travel ball seasons in Connecticut and throughout her high school seasons that she was clearly that type of player."
But even with high expectations, Sullivan exceeded them in her Tufts career, wowing everyone with her jaw-dropping defensive plays, even down to her last games in a Tufts uniform.
"There were plays [during the postseason] where I said, ‘Honestly, I've watched this kid for four years, and I can't believe she just made that play,'" Milligan said. "And a number of other coaches have come up to me and said, ‘My God, how does she … I was looking for the ball to be at the fence, and it is in Casey's glove, and she is throwing to first base.'"
Perhaps it should come as no surprise, then, that Milligan is not shy when it comes to praising her team's leader.
"Defensively, I think she is probably the most amazing athlete we have ever had here," she said. "And that is probably going to make a lot of people upset, but I think it is true … But I think defensively, she plays with an ‘If the ball is hit, I'm going to get it' attitude, and she has the physical skills to match it. So it has been incredible to watch, and I think many of our peer institutions would also say it has been incredible to watch her play defense."
Quite a hitter, too
If Sullivan wasn't as well-known for her offensive capabilities when she arrived at Tufts, it didn't take long for her to begin making an impression at the plate. Sullivan was immediately thrust into the spotlight in the 2007 season. With 2006 NESCAC Player of the Year Danielle Lopez (LA '09) out for the season with a knee injury, Sullivan stepped right in as an everyday starter at second base.
"My freshman year, I actually played second base because Danielle Lopez had been hurt that year, and she had played second base for the past two years," Sullivan said. "But she was on the team and she was really helpful and encouraging. I also had another great captain that year, Megan Cusick (LA '08), who did a really good job of helping me fit right in."
She did not disappoint in that first season, hitting .399 and leading her team with nine home runs and a .655 slugging percentage. Sullivan's outstanding numbers helped her earn a slew of postseason accolades: selections to the All-NESCAC and All-New England First Teams, the conference Rookie of the Year award and a Third Team All-American honor.
"It was definitely a faster game than my high school," Sullivan said. "But I feel like playing in summer travel softball helped a lot, and there were also a lot of really great older girls that made the transition easy."
It would be tough to live up to such a prodigious debut, but Sullivan continued to excel in the next few seasons as she reverted back to the left side of the infield at short. On a 2009 team with numerous senior leaders, she played an integral part in helping Tufts to a program-best 44-3 mark, a College World Series berth and a fourth-place finish in the nation.
Sullivan was selected to the All-NESCAC First Team for a second time and was third on the team with a .379 average, second in slugging and tied with then-senior Cara Hovhanessian (LA '09) for the team lead in home runs with five.
This year, even with opposing teams putting more focus on her with some big bats gone from the Tufts lineup, Sullivan upped almost all of her numbers from her junior year. She set a career-high with a .425 average, led the conference in slugging and runs scored, was second with 18 steals and tied for the NESCAC lead in home runs with 10.
Sullivan's display at the plate might have surprised Milligan somewhat, but it did not come as much of a shock for Patterson. He remembers Sullivan not just for her defense but also as one of the best offensive players he had seen.
"One of the things here at Suffield is that she was probably also the best offensive player we have seen come through here in a long time," Patterson said. "I remember one game, we were playing at Northfield Mount Hermon, and I think she went five-for-five with three home runs and two grand slams."
Embracing a new role
Sullivan had to do more than just carry the offensive load for Tufts this season. Having graduated eight seniors from last year's World Series team, the Jumbos were counting on Sullivan as one of their few remaining veterans and one of the few members of the team with significant playing experience. Thus, she was thrust into a new role as leader and captain. In addition to being relied upon in the field and on the plate, Sullivan had to mentor some of the younger players.
"I think the transition from, ‘I've never had to worry about anyone but me' to, ‘I am the person worrying about everybody' was certainly a transition for her and probably a challenge," Milligan said. "But the fact that it didn't interfere with her game — which is probably the most important thing she brings to our team — is certainly a feather in her cap, for sure. She does what comes naturally for her, and that works for her as a leader."
Sullivan stepped up time and again for the Jumbos in 2010, relishing her role as the team's leader and primary impact player. On a young squad, she knew that she had to use her experience as an example for others. And when Tufts needed her, she delivered, like when she hit a walk-off homer in extra innings to beat NESCAC rival Trinity, 3-2, in the second game of a doubleheader on April 18.
"I definitely put a lot of pressure on myself this season because of how young the rest of the team was," Sullivan said. "I went into the season thinking that we were young, but there was no time for me to play like I was young. I needed to play like a senior that had been on the team for the last three years."
All in all, her efforts helped lead Tufts to its sixth consecutive NESCAC East title. Unfortunately for Sullivan and the Jumbos, that is where the team accolades ended. Tufts' run of three consecutive NESCAC championships ended when it lost an elimination game to Williams, and the team missed out on appearing in the NCAA Regionals for the first time since 2005.
"This season was cut very short, and it was definitely a weird way to go out, especially watching a lot of my really close friends graduate last year and get to finish their season at the World Series," Sullivan said. "So it is for sure a disappointment, and we wanted to work to get back there. But it is what it is, and hopefully next year's team can work to defend our title and win it back."
It is a testament to Sullivan's drive that even with all her personal success, she was not satisfied with how the team finished. Patterson knows that on a team, it can't be about just one person. And with all the great players Sullivan played with, that wasn't the case at Tufts.
"You are not going to have the success that we had here or at Tufts with just Casey alone," Patterson said. "That is what made her a very special person — it wasn't about her; it was about the team. And she would do whatever it takes to make sure the team had success."
A lasting legacy
After suffering just one loss before making it to the World Series last year, the Jumbos fell to 22-13 in 2010. But despite what the Jumbos couldn't accomplish this season, Sullivan's impact on the program is hardly diminished. This year, she was an all-around force for an inexperienced team that had its fair share of growing pains.
"She did it all," Milligan said. "She absolutely did it all. I think she is as determined as they come, and she is a very special player. You are not going to get one of those every four years, and you are not going to get one of those every 10 years, maybe."
Sullivan joins a long list of great players in the Tufts program. Still, she measures up with the best Milligan has ever coached and exceeds even the best of them on the defensive side.
"Defensively, bar none, probably the best defensive player ever to have played here … Offensively, I think she is up there," Milligan said. "She brings the same determination and headstrong, ‘I'm better than you' attitude to the plate that she does to the field, and it works for her.
"I probably couldn't say she is the best offensive player we have ever had, but defensively, it is no contest," she continued. "There isn't anyone in the history of me here — which goes back to 1991 — that could compete."
