Andrea Farquhar returns for her eighth season with the Gaels. Stuck in the basement before she arrived, the program has gone 45-35 in the conference in the last five seasons. In 2005 Coach Farquhar led the Gaels to their first regular season championship in 20 years. Its post season appearance in 2002 was the first for the program in seven years. For her efforts Farquhar was named MAAC Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2005.
The 2006 season ended in disappointment for Iona after a 5-11 campaign in the conference. Of note were the achievements of juniors Alyson Funn and Stacy Moyer. Both played through injuries and back onto the All-Conference team for the second time each.
The 2005 campaign was a banner year for the Gaels. A 15-1 record was good enough to earn them a 2005 regular season MAAC championship. At 32-14 overall the Gaels softball team enjoyed the best season in the program’s history on the diamond. The 15 conference wins set a new MAAC record and 32 overall wins set a new Iona record. The Gaels placed five players on the All-MAAC team, including Player of the Year Liz Hammel and Rookie of the Year Becky Riccitelli. Finishing the season with an RPI ranking of 70, wins over 24th ranked Seton Hall, 44th ranked Stetson and 47th ranked Troy State highlighted the season. Iona was also honored by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association for their top 10 team GPA in Division I softball.
In 2004, after finishing up in a three way tie for 3rd with a record of 9-7 in the conference, Iona just missed making the MAAC Tournament. The Gaels also finished above the .500 mark (26-20) for the first time in more than a decade, setting a new program record for wins. After a tremendous year Ali Higgs was named Player of the Year, leading the MAAC in wins (22) and batting average (.400). Classmate Hammel was also named 1st Team All-Conference. Amanda Pucci, Alex Sprague and were all named to the 2nd Team. The Gaels finished up the year ranked 18th in the country in team GPA.
An injury plagued 2003 season saw Iona finish 6th in the MAAC with a record of 6-10. Kate Giella was named 1st Team All-Conference at the end of the season. Senior pitching ace, Amy Burdette, was also named to the All-Conference Team. Iona again ended the year in the top 20 nationally in team GPA.
The 2002 season saw the Gaels return to the post season for the first time in seven years with a record of 10-6 in conference play. 3 players were voted onto the All-Conference team. Iona just missed the top 10 nationally in GPA, finishing in 11th place.
Iona's 2000 and 2001 campaigns saw the Gaels working to build a competitive program in the MAAC. Academic achievements highlighted the seasons with Iona finishing 13th in the country in GPA in 2001 and 5th in the country in 2000.
Prior to coming to Iona, Coach Farquhar served as the graduate assistant coach for D.II University of West Alabama from 1998-99. In her two seasons there as the hitting coach UWA rewrote their record books. The 1999 team set new marks in most team and individual offensive categories. While there she completed a MSCE in Counseling and Psychology.
Andrea spent her playing days at Pacific Lutheran University under the tutelage of Ralph Weekly (from 1992-1994) and Rick Noren (1995). Starting at first base all four years, her greatest career highlight was being a member of the 1992 National Championship squad. She helped lead PLU to four straight Conference Championships and three National Championship appearances during her career. She also garnered NAIA All-American Awards in 1993 and 1995 while being voted the PNWAC Conference Player of the Year both of those years.
After graduating with a BA in American History, Farquhar stayed on at PLU as an assistant coach. In 1996 she was a member of the coaching staff that guided the team to a 5th place finish at the NAIA National Championships.
