Eastern Connecticut State University

The unimposing physical appearance of 5-foot-4 inch right-handed pitcher Christia Mohan Besko belied a fierce competitiveness which carried her to NCAA Division III All-America honors three times and made her the 1990 national Player-of-the-Year as a senior when she led the Warriors to their fifth national championship. Mohan Besko culminated that record-setting senior season by winning three games on the final day of the national tournament that included two complete-game conquests of defending national champion Trenton State College.  In addition to repeating first-team All-America honors in 1990, the Stockton, Calif. native was additionally honored as the only nominee from Division III for the prestigious Honda Sports Award, symbolizing the nation’s No. 1 collegiate softball player. In her four-year career, Mohan Besko compiled a record of 73 wins and 16 losses with a 0.92 ERA and 429 strikeouts in 621 innings and pitched Eastern to four regional championships and national finishes of first, second and third twice. In that span, Eastern won 136 of 166 games (81.9 per cent) and lost just one regular-season northern game to a Division III opponent, posting an overall northern record of 94-10.  In regional and national tournament play, Mohan Besko was 16-3 with eight shutouts and three no-hitters. At the time of graduation, Mohan Besko held seven career and four season New England records, and 17 years after graduation, still holds six program career records and three season records.