Kris Talon

		Kris Talon

Softball coach posts 300th win
by Julie Fox

The Tufts University softball team edged Eastern Connecticut State University 2-1 in eight innings on April 14 to complete a sweep of the Warriors and give Head Coach Kris Talon her 300th career victory.

Talon, a 1986 Tufts graduate, is in her 15th season as head coach and has been involved with the team since its first season in 1985. She has a 302-149-3 overall record for a .669 winning percentage.

Talon played first base and pitched for the first two softball teams in Tufts' history during the 1985 and 1986 seasons. She hit .370 in two seasons and was the captain in 1986. After graduating, she became the assistant coach of the team. She was promoted to head coach in 1988, and since then, the team has been to five straight NCAA tournaments.

In 2000, Talon guided the team to its first NCAA College World Series appearance, for which only the top eight teams in the country qualify. The Jumbos won the inaugural New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) tournament in 2001 and also won the ECAC North Championship in 1995.

Talon's 100th career victory came on April 29, 1994, with a 7-0 win over Colby College. Her 200th victory was on April 8, 1998, with a 6-1 win over Plymouth State College.

Talon is active in the softball community outside of Tufts. In 1999 and 2001, she coached the Croatian National team at the European Championships. In 2000, she coached a team on a goodwill trip to play softball in Cuba. She is also a member of the National Top 25 Selection Committee and chair of the ECAC All-Star Committee.

In 1995, Talon was named the Northeast Region Coach of the Year when Tufts finished with a record 31 victories. In 2001, she was named NESCAC Coach of the Year and also was named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association New England Region Coaching Staff of the Year, along with assistants Cheryl Milligan and Cora Thompson.