Arguably the greatest honor a college athlete can receive is earning induction into its Athletic Hall of Fame. And if there is ever a player who deserves it, says former head coach Harry Sauter, it is former standout/assistant coach Kristine Botto Drust.
"Kristine is the face of UMass Lowell softball," said Sauter. "She was the consummate team player and nothing came before the team. All the players looked up to her and respected her as a leader both on and off the field."
The amount of honors Botto Drust earned during her four years is staggering and rare. Highlighting them is the fact that she remains the only UMass Lowell player to earn All-American honors twice, her junior and senior seasons in which she led the River Hawks to a combined record of 59-35.
Botto Drust was also a three-time All-Northeast Region honoree by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA), earning First Team twice and Second Team once.
She garnered first team all-conference honors during those years as well, earning first team status in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) as a sophomore and junior and the Northeast-10 Conference as a senior.
Botto Drust never hit a home run and only hit for extra bases three times in her entire career. She was a lead-off slap hitter, known for uncanny speed, who routinely beat out infield hits.
She compiled 205 singles and 77 stolen bases for her career, both tops on UMass Lowell's career lists. No player is remotely close.
"With Kristine on first, the odds of having her on second were very good," Sauter noted. "If she got on base more than once we were sure to score. She was an offensive spark plug."
Botto Drust also ranks third all-time in runs scored (126) and hits (208) and fourth in batting (.343) and games played (185). Single season marks include singles (66 in 2001) and stolen bases (33 in 2000).
As a student-athlete, Botto Drust's influence spread much farther than the diamond. She served on UMass Lowell's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee as a junior and a senior and was involved in many community service efforts.
Following graduation, Botto Drust played for the New England Riptide of the National Pro Fastpitch League in 2005 and 2006; and the Connecticut Brakettes of the American Softball Association in 2004. She helped the Riptide to the 2006 NPF Championship and the Brakettes to the ASA title in 2004.
Underscoring her commitment to the softball program, Botto spent eight seasons as an assistant coach at UMass Lowell, commuting from Middletown, CT, to Lowell four days a week.
A native of Lowell and graduate of Lowell H.S., she was inducted into the Lowell H.S. Hall of Fame in 2007.
