ULM Warhawks

By Paul Letlow, ULMWarhawks.com Online Columnist

MONROE, La. - As ULM senior outfielder Rochelle Roberts wheeled into second base with a double on Saturday, she was surprised to hear her coach calling timeout. 

"I had no idea," Roberts said Sunday morning before ULM softball Senior Day recognition. "He starts calling time and I'm at second wondering, 'What is going on? Why are we calling time in this situation?'
"My parents are here and my dad is in the stands yelling, 'Get that ball! Get that ball!'"

As it turned out, Roberts surpassed a major ULM milestone over the weekend as she became the softball program's career leader in hits. Her double was career hit 243 and moved her past ULM L Club Hall of Famer Lorie Tande Bruscato in the record book. 

"It was overwhelming," Roberts said, after realizing her achievement. "We had just got done talking this week about our 'whys.' Why we're playing softball at the D-1 level. One of my 'whys' is to set records and break records that were set before me and have everybody chase after me one day. I'm here to be the best and that's what we just talked about this week. To have that happen this weekend was really overwhelming."

Roberts, it turns out, had no idea she was approaching the record. 

"I was so shocked," Roberts said. "They kept me updated on some of the records I'm getting close to but nope, I didn't know about that one."

ULM coach Corey Lyon called the three-time All-Sun Belt Conference outfielder "a dynamic player" in describing her record-breaking career. 

"It doesn't take much to watch the kid and tell she's different," Lyon said. "She's special. For her to overcome the adversity  within her playing career, overcoming injury and then miss all of last year and come back and have the kind of year she's had, I think it speaks to her greatness and the legacy that she'll leave here."

Roberts missed all of the 2017 season prior to the birth of her daughter Daivanie on July 20. She was able to return and play at a high level while balancing school and motherhood. 

"It's pushed me to limits that I never thought I'd be pushed to," Roberts said. "Having different coaches every year, being such an older player than the other players has helped me to build my life skills.
"But being a new mom has helped me relax. They're great with her and great with me. Everybody is so understanding of my situation. It's been a really fun ride. It's sad that it's coming to an end."

The Vacaville, Calif., native arrived on the scene back in 2014 and batted .343 with 46 hits to earn Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year. As a sophomore she was All-Sun Belt Conference with 59 more hits and a .382 batting average. She missed the final 12 games of her junior campaign with an injury in 2016 but still batted a school record .483 with 71 hits, the highest tally at the time since Brenda Dawson's 76 in 1992. 

"Rochelle is a triple threat when she is in the box," Lyon said. "She can swing away and hit, she can bunt and play the short game. And, she's just incredibly smart. Her softball IQ is one of the highest softball IQs that I've ever been around. She just understands the game. She's really good about taking what the defense gives her. It's pretty incredible to see her read the defense and know exactly what to do and when to do it."

Roberts said versatility at the plate helped her pile up the hits (now 245 and couting). Her career average currently stands at .393, which is also the highest in ULM history and she has 110 career stolen bases to rank second among Warhawks and Indians.    

"Being able to bunt, being able to slap, being able to hit and keep the defense on its toes creates a lot of holes for me that other people don't have," Roberts said. "Being fast like I am allows me to use the short game a lot."

Moving past Tande Bruscato in any offensive category is a significant achievement. The 2011 ULM Hall of Fame inductee collected 242 hits with 41 home runs and posted a career .342 average from 1999-2002. She was a four-time all-conference shortstop.

"Both my daughters go to Sterlington and Lori coached Carson, my middle daughter a couple years," Lyon said. "To hear the stories about her and how good of a player and how special a player she was, I think for anybody to be mentioned in the same breath as Lori is a pretty big accomplishment." 

Roberts said she's savored her final year playing softball at ULM, where she's hitting .366 with 23 steals and established another school standard with an 18-game hitting streak. 

"It's been up and down. It's been a road for sure," she said. "But it's been great because I'm so lucky to have this last year. For coach to bring me back this last year has been a real blessing in my life and my family's life." 

Senior Day is always a special moment for college athletes and Roberts was able to include her daughter in the receiving line on Sunday along with other family members. The nine-month-old has been a fixture around the ULM softball program this season.   

"My daughter, people say is the best baby you will ever meet," Roberts said. "I think it's because she's been around so many different people since she was born. She goes in the coach's office and hangs out. She's down here on a blanket while I'm doing hitting. … She's everywhere. We have a huge family base in Monroe since I've been here, so everybody is willing to help."

Records are meant to broken and it's possible Roberts could be passed up by junior teammate Sydney McKay early next season. McKay is in close pursuit with more than 200 career hits of her own.  

"I'm there for somebody to chase after me," Roberts said. "I'm just happy that I broke it and for the next person to come along and do it, especially if it's one of my teammates that I played with, that's even better. It's a game full of ups and downs. When you reach that milestone you never thought you would reach, it's amazing."  

Said Lyon: "If you look at the way we're building the program and the traditions that we're starting, to have and the talent coming in that we have, it's pretty fun. The future is very bright. When you look at kids like Sydney McKay and the kids we have coming up like Jayden Mount, you see the level of talent we have coming and it just keeps getting better and better. It speaks to our commitment as a coaching staff to making ourselves better and building this program into one of the best in the Sun Belt. It's been a lot of fun to watch these kids grow up."



Rochelle Roberts in the ULM record books
Career:
1st - All-time batting average     .393
6th - slugging percent                .499
3rd- on-base percent                 .436
3rd - runs scored                        152
1st- most hits                              245
5th- stolen base percent            .866
3rd- most triples                         10
10th- runs batted in                    82
T-1st- sac. flies                            8
5th- total bases                           311
2nd- stolen bases                       110

Season:
Batting Average:  1st-  2016  -  .483
                               8th-  2015  -  .382
Slugging Percent: 4th-  2016 -   .721 
On base Percent:  3rd-  2016 -  .530
Highest Stolen Base Per: 4th-  2016  - .917
Runs Scored:   3rd- 2016 -   48
                           6th- 2015 -   42
Most Hits:   4th-  71   - 2016
                     9th-  65  - 2015
Most Triples:  5th-  5  - 2016
Total Bases:  4th -  106  - 2016
Sac Flies:  3rd  -  3   twice 2015 and 2018
Most Stolen Based: 6th-  36  - 2015
                                   8th -  33 -  2016
Longest Hitting Streak in School History - 18  - 2018