Gleason Added to Softball Staff

Head softball coach Jeff Franquet has added Breanne Gleason to the Central Connecticut coaching staff for the upcoming year.  She comes to Central following a pair of seasons on the coaching staff at the University of New Haven.

"I am thrilled to be a part of the CCSU softball program," said Gleason. "Coach Franquet has done amazing things here at Central and I'm very excited to have the opportunity to coach with him. From the moment I came to campus I knew this was where I wanted to be. I'm looking forward to working with the student-athletes here and being a part of the great tradition of Blue Devil Softball."

"Having Breanne on board is a great addition to our program," Franquet said. "We are looking for knowledge, commitment, loyalty and a great work ethic from our assistant coaches and Breanne fits the mold perfectly.  She has a great knowledge of the game, she was a great pitcher and now is a great teacher."

Gleason, a 2010 graduate of New Haven, has spent the last two years serving as an assistant coach at her alma mater.  During that time, she worked extensively with New Haven's pitching staff, while also assisting with recruiting and the day-to-day administrative duties of the program.

Gleason also served as the softball team's academic coordinator at New Haven.  In that role she was responsible for overseeing the academic success of new student-athletes, weekly team monitoring and serving as a liaison with academic support staff.

During her playing career, Gleason was a standout in the circle and at the plate.  She led the Chargers to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including the program's best postseason run in 2010.

Individually, Gleason finished her career as the Charger's all-time leader in at-bats, doubles, pitching appearances, strikeouts, wins and innings pitched, and also finished within the top-10 in six other statistical categories.  She was a two-time Third Team All-America selection, a four-time Daktronics All-Region selection and in 2010 won both the Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year Awards from the Northeast-10 Conference, becoming only the second player to earn both honors in the same season.

Also, she was the 20th Division II pitcher to record 1,000 career strikeouts and the 22nd to reach 100 victories.  She also threw a perfect game during her career.

She began working toward her masters in business administration, while coaching at New Haven.

Gleason is a Connecticut native and attended Bristol Central High School.

Franquet added, "Breanne's excitement to be a part of our program and her energy and passion for the game are awesome and that is exactly what we are looking for on our staff.  She will be a great addition to our Blue Devil family."