Pittsburgh Female Athlete of the Week

Lisa Kaczynski

School: Mt. Alvernia

Class: Junior

Sport: Softball

Notable: Kaczynski became the winning pitcher by connecting on an eighth-inning home run in a 2-1 victory over Springdale on April 10. She enjoyed playing extra innings and believes the pressure makes her play better.

"I usually never get nervous," Kaczynski said. "When we go into extra innings, it's fun. You want to win it in the end. I like the pressure to be on me."

Kaczynski has been the starting pitcher at Mt. Alvernia since her freshman season. She is also the shooting guard for the basketball team, which advanced deep into the WPIAL and PIAA playoffs. Kaczynski said the conditioning from basketball is something that allows her to pitch, especially in extra-inning contests.

Kaczynski said she would like to play softball in college. She said that she has received interest from Akron and Ohio Wesleyan, among others. The Lawrenceville resident is also an excellent student with a 4.32 grade-point average. She is a member of the National Honor Society, student council, peer mediation and campus ministry.

- Ed Phillipps