Leto carries on as team notches seven-game win streak
EastCountySports.com
LOWELL, Mass. - Valhalla High/Northwestern University alum CARRI LETO continues to rank among the National Professional Fastpitch League leaders in several categories while she and her New York Juggernaut teammates remain in hot pursuit of Olympic Gold Medalist Jennie Finch and the front-running Chicago Bandits.
 
Leto contributed an RBI single and stole a base as the Nauts knocked off the New England Riptide 3-1 on Sunday (July 10) to complete a three-game sweep of the 'Tide.  It was New York's 7th straight win and left the Nauts (20-3) one-half game behind Chicago.
 
At the moment, Leto is batting .319 with 23 hits (14th highest in the league), 11 RBI, 7 steals (6th highest in the NPF), 5 extra-base hits and six sacrifices (tied for the NPF lead).
 
The Nauts return home to Hofstra University Softball Stadium on Wednesday (July 13) to host the Venezuelan National Team.
(07-11-05)

Leto knocks in runs during Juggernauts latest win streak
EastCountySports.com
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. - Former Valhalla High standout CARRI LETO doesn't dominate the National Fast-Pitch League in any particular category. But the one-time Northwestern University star has been a major influence in the New York Juggernaut's surge to an 18-3 record through Wednesday (July 6).
 
The slick-fielding second baseman, who boasts a .338 batting average (22 for 65) for the 'Nauts, swatted a game-winning sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 9th as New York nipped the Texas Thunder 4-3 on Saturday (July 2). Leto also tripled and scored on a suicide squeeze in the 1st inning of that win.
 
A day later, Leto slugged an RBI double as the 'Nauts completed a series sweep of the Texas Thunder 7-6, while recording their fourth come from behind victory in as many days.

New York ventured on the road for the first time on a rainy Wednesday night (July 6) and the results were the same - a 9-2 victory over the New England Riptide in Lowell, Mass. An 8-run 9th inning gave the 'Nauts their 5th straight come-from-behind victory. Leto slashed a two-run triple in the lopsided victory.

Leto carries a .338 batting average (.22 for 65).
(07-06-05)

Leto's team now 15-3 in NPF
EastCountySports.com
HEMPSTEAD, NY - CARRI LETO has enjoyed better nights, but the Valhalla High graduate is pleased to have contributed a helping hand in the New York Juggernaut's back-to-back victories over the Texas Thunder 3-2 on Thursday (June 30) and 8-3 on Friday (July 1). The Juggernaut now stands 15-3 in the National Fast Pitch League.

The Juggernaut tied Thursday's game in the bottom of the 1st inning.  An error by the Thunder shortstop allowed Leto (Valhalla High) to reach first.  Leto stole second base and reached third on a Leah Nelson single to center field.  Leto scored on a well executed double steal before Nelson was tagged out at second base to end the inning.
 
Leto went 1 for 3 and is now hitting .358 on the season.

In Friday's game, Leto contributed a scoring fly ball as the 'Nauts tamed the Thunder on a rainy night.
(07-01-05)

Leto leads 'Naut to win over Chinese National Team
EastCountySports.com
 
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. - There seemingly is no stopping CARRI LETO. East County's most prolific professional softball player in history continues to shine for the New York Juggernaut.

Leto, a product of Valhalla High and Northwestern University, was 2-for-2 with an RBI and two runs scored Friday (June 24) as the Juggernaut topped the Chinese National Team 5-1.
 
In Thursday's (June 23) 5-3 win over the Chinese, Leto - a 2004 National Professional Fast-Pitch All-Star second baseman - singled and scored and later picked up an RBI with a bases-loaded walk in Montville, N.J.
 
The Juggernaut (12-2) concludes the weekend with games against the Chinese on Saturday (June 25) and Sunday (June 26).
(06-24-05)

Leto's single wins game in seventh
EastCountySports.com
 
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. - Granted, it is way too premature to be discussing MVP awards for the National Professional Fast Pitch League. But Valhalla High alumnus CARRI LETO continues to provide the key hits for the New York/New Jersey Juggernaut in the early going this season.
 
Leto stroked a walk-off RBI single Friday (June 17) to give the Juggernaut a 2-1 victory over the Stratford (Conn.) Brakettes.
 
Leto finished her latest outing with two hits in four at-bats. The veteran second baseman for the 8-2 'Nauts is batting at a .294 clip.
(06-17-05)

Leto hot in second season of NPF

EastCountySports.com
 
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- The opening week of NPF (National Pro Fastpitch women's softball) proved to be a strong one for former Valhalla High and Northwestern University standout CARRI LETO.
After making an immediate impact with the New York-New Jersey Juggernaut as a rookie in 2004 by making the All-Star team as a second baseman and helping the team to a Cowles Cup championship, Leto is doing even better in 2005. Following the first week of play, the Nauts are tied with Akron for the best record in the NPF at 7-1, with Leto, the leadoff batter, registering on-base percentage over the .300 mark despite walking just once through the opening eight contests.
Meanwhile, the Southern California Hurricanes, Leto's last amateur team during the 2001 and 2002 seasons (consecutive second place finishes at ASA Women's Majors Nationals both years), has been designated one of several ballclubs to join NPF as professional franchises for the 2006 season. The promotion of the Canes could become the opening for Leto to return to play in Southern California.
However, removing Leto from the East Coast may prove difficult. Leto's image is prominent on the team's official website, where she leads the team poll as its most popular player over former UCLA All-American Natasha Watley, plus she works for Citi Habitats, a real estate company in New York City, during the offseason.
The Juggernaut now plays their home contests at Hofstra University.
(06-13-05)

Leto gets one-year deal from softball champs

Leto earns U.S. National Team audition
EastCountySports.com
 
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Valhalla High and Northwestern University alum CARRI LETO, the All-Star second baseman for the NPF champion New York-New Jersey Juggernaut professional women's softball team, is among a list of 40 selected to tryout for the 2005 U.S. National Team. The announcement was made jointly by USA Softball and the Amateur Softball Association; the team will hold camp Jan. 3-7 at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista.
 
Leto finished among the top hitters for the Juggernaut, which finished third in the regular season, yet captured both playoff series to claim the Cowles Cup as titlists of National Pro Fastpitch.
 
An 18-member national team will be selected from this camp to represent the United States at the Pacific Rim Sports Summit, set for June 5-12 in Seattle, Wash. A second selection camp will be held June 12-17 to choose the 2005 USA Softball National and Elite teams who will compete in the remainder of the year's international events.
(12-08-04)

Carri Leto, lower left corner, poses with teammates hoisting the Cowles Cup as national champions of women's professional softball.

Leto leads 'Naut to Pro Softball crown

EastCountySports.com
 
AKRON, Ohio - The New York Juggernaut won the inaugural Cowles Cup National Professional Softball World Series championship by nailing the New England Riptide 10-1 on Sunday afternoon (Aug. 29) in Akron, Ohio. It was more than just a blowout. Inclement weather has been a hindrance all week, and then the threat of a tornado caused the scheduled best 2-out-of-3 event to be shortened to a single game.
 
Players, coaches and fans were ordered to assemble in the areas under the grandstands at Firestone Stadium (where they have the offices, locker rooms, etc.). Word was earlier in the day a tornado touched down 10 miles away. It then rained hard, delaying and eventually shortening the championship series.
 
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, Juggernaut means a massive inexorable force, campaign, movement, or object that crushes whatever is in its path, and that is exactly what happened for NY/NJ Juggernaut.
 
Lyndsey Klein finished the day 3 for 4. CARRI LETO (Valhalla High/Northwestern University, pictured lower left) scored two runs, hit a single and had a walk. Leto hit safely in all four playoff games - a NFP record. Kelly Wilkerson hit a three run blast over the right field fence and pitcher Amanda Scott was named the Series Most Valuable player.
(08-29-04)

Clark homers three times for first time in career in Yankees' clubbing
EastCountySports.com
 
TONY CLARK is arguably the greatest power hitter ever produced in East County, albeit the San Diego Padres' BRIAN GILES holds a 226-190 lead over the 6-foot-8, 260-pound Clark in career home runs. When it comes to breaking out the tape measure, however, that's where Clark - the New York Yankees switching-hitting first baseman has few equals anywhere. Clark, who has split 10 big league season between Detroit, Boston, the New York Mets and the Yankees, clouted a career-best three home runs to help the Bronx Bombers set a major league record Saturday (Aug. 28) in Toronto.
 
Considered one of the classiest players in baseball, Clark cashed in on a rare start, delivering a three-run homer in the 6th inning and then swatting gargantuan solo shots in the 8th and 9th to help the Yankees topple Toronto 18-6 in front of 43,541 at Skydome.
 
Clark's second homer reached the second deck in right center and his third blast banged into the windows behind the fence in center field.
 
Making only his second start in 14 games, Clark - a product of Valhalla and Christian high schools - put the Yankees ahead with a three-run, opposite-field homer. The two bonus solo shots created Clark's 3rd multi-homer game of the year and 16th of his career.
 
For the season, Clark has 15 home runs in 221 at-bats, many of which came in pinch-hitting roles.
 
"You've gotta work more often when you're not in there every day," Clark said. "This was something that I got into last year (with the Mets) coming off the bench and getting myself into a routine where when my number was called, I could contribute something. You have good days and bad days. You have good days and bad days when you do play every day, but your work doesn't change from the standpoint of trying to put yourself in a position on game day to be successful."
 
Clark's home runs have helped the 2004 Yankees become the first team to hit more than 200 home runs in four consecutive seasons.
(08-28-04)
 
 

Leto, Juggernaut to play for NPF Cowles Cup
EastCountySports.com
 
AKRON, Ohio - Valhalla High alum CARRI LETO extended her postseason hitting streak to three games, while Courtney Scott clouted a tie-breaking, 2-run homer as the New York-New Jersey Juggernaut eliminated the Akron Racers, 3-2, in Friday's (Aug. 27) deciding game of their semifinal round series of the National Pro Softball Championship series. That victory earned the 'Nauts a berth in the NPF Cowles Cup finals versus New England.
 
Leto, a record-breaking second baseman out of Northwestern University is 3-for-10 in the playoffs, leading all Juggernaut batters with a .300 average after reaching base with a single in each game, and scoring the team's lone run in a 3-1 loss in Game Two to Akron.
 
The Juggernaut, the No. 3 seed, is now the favorite to capture the Cowles Cup following New England's 3-0 upset of the regular season champion Texas Thunder. The Riptide (25-35 in the regular season) also captured their semifinals series, 2-games-to-1.
 
Scott snapped a 1-1 tie with a two-run homer in the 4th inning off Akron starter Brandee McArthur that put the 'Nauts on top to stay.
 
The Juggernaut-New England Riptide title series will also be a best-of-3 affair, with Game One slated for Saturday (Aug. 28) at 4:05 p.m. (San Diego time), and can be heard online at: www.npf.prosportsradio.com. Game Two will be on Sunday at 1 p.m. PDT, with a third game, if necessary, to follow on the same day.
(08-28-04)
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Leto, Juggernaut will face Akron team in playoff series opener
EastCountySports.com
 
AKRON, Ohio - Following a stellar season which saw her earn a starting berth in the National Pro Fastpitch All-Star Game, former Valhalla High and Northwestern University standout CARRI LETO will lead the New York-New Jersey Juggernaut against the host Akron Racers in next week's NPF Playoffs.
 
Both teams concluded the regular season with 39-21 records, finishing three full games behind the champion Texas Thunder, which battles the New England Riptide in the other Final Four match-up. Both series will be contested at Firestone Stadium in Akron, along with the ensuing NPF championship series.
 
All postseason contests can be heard nationally online via Pro Sports Radio (go to: http://www.npf.prosportsradio.com/npf/ to hear the ballgames).
 
Leto, the 'Nauts second baseman, finished among the league leaders in several categories, including fourth in stolen bases (11), seventh in total hits (41) and eighth in runs scored (17).
 
The semifinals will be held Wed.-Fri., Aug. 25-27. Game One of the NPF World Series is slated for Sat., Aug. 28, with the final game(s) held on Sun., Aug. 29. All series are best 2-out-of-3 games. The Juggernaut-Racers series begins at 3 p.m. PDT..
(08-20-04)

Leto's efforts not for naught as 'Naut gains playoff berth
EastCountySports.com
 
AKRON, Ohio - Backed by seven All-Stars, including former Valhalla High standout CARRI LETO, the New York-New Jersey Juggernaut clinched a playoff berth to the National Pro Fastpitch softball playoffs Tuesday (Aug. 10), but their playoff opponent remains in question.
 
The Juggernaut (32-20) rests in third place, and should they remain there, will meet the second place team in the NPF semifinals in a best-of-3 series. That opponent will be either the Texas Thunder or the Akron Racers whom are tied for first place entering the final week of the regular season. The loser between the teams will finish second and meet Leto & Co., while the regular season champion will meet the fourth-place New England Riptide.
 
The league also announced that all NPF postseason contests would be hosted by Akron at Firestone Stadium. The semifinals are slated for Aug. 25-27, with doubleheaders each day as necessary, then the NPF Championship Series following with Game One on Sat., Aug. 28, then Game Two and, if necessary, Game Three, on Sun., Aug. 29.
(08-10-04)

League hit leader Leto makes All-Star team
East CountySports.Com
 
DENVER - Sources have informed East County Sports.com that former Valhalla High standout CARRI LETO will be named to the National Pro Fastpitch Softball All-Star team on Tuesday (July 6).
 
Following an outstanding collegiate career at Northwestern University, Leto ranks among the top 10 league leaders in several offensive categories while playing for the New York-New Jersey Juggernaut. The rookie second baseman leads all NPF players in total hits, while ranking among the top five in runs scores, walks and stolen bases.
 
While Leto is recognized for her hitting expertise on paper, her excellence in the field sometimes is overlooked. Those close to the New York-New Jersey team will attest to her stellar and routinely acrobatic defensive play in the field - - sort of a female version of Khalil Greene.
(07-05-04)
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Leto leads new league in hitting after nine games
East CountySports.Com
 
MONTCLAIR, NJ - Former Valhalla High and Northwestern University standout CARRI LETO is making a smooth transition and an immediate impact as a rookie in the National Pro Fastpitch Softball League. Leto, the starting second baseman for the New York/New Jersey Juggernauts, has compiled a league-leading .429 batting average (15-for-35) nine games into her first pro season.
 
Leto and the Juggernauts will receive some national television coverage on Sunday (June 13) when they host the California Sunbirds in a 4:35 p.m. (PDT) game to be carried by the YES Network home to the New York Yankees. Only those who subscribe to the YES Network will be able to view this contest and three others scheduled to be carried. .
(06-12-04)