2017: Molly Roche spent most of the season as the team’s designated pinch hitter before moving into the starting designated player role late in the campaign. Nine of her 10 starts came over the team’s final 15 games, including the final four games of the regular season. In those four games, Roche batted .400 with four hits in 10 at-bats including a double in the opener against Saint Peter’s. She picked up at least one hit in eight of her final 14 appearances and batted .357 during the stretch with 10 hits in 28 at-bats. Roche garnered a hit against #18 LSU in the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional and added a walk in three plate appearances against the Tigers. The senior hit her only home run of the season on the final weekend of the regular-season, going 2 for 3 with a double and a homer in the second game of the Saint Peter’s doubleheader.
2016: Molly Roche ended the season with a .263 batting average and owned a .297 mark following the regular-season. She owned a .300 hitting percentage as a pinch hitter (3 for 10) with four RBI. Her first hit as a pinch hitter was a three-run double that helped Fairfield post a 14-3 win over North Dakota in March. Her last base hit was a pinch-hit single against Saint Peter’s. Roche had a base hit in five games this year and the Stags went on to win four of those games. Roche collected two starts this season, getting the nod against Western Michigan and Yale. The junior was hit by a pitch twice this season which raised her on-base percentage to .444. Roche played in all five MAAC tournament games a year ago and had four hits, two of which were homers which accounted for half of her four home runs in 2015.
2015: Molly Roche posted a .250 batting average overall to date with 11 hits in 47 at-bats. She had a team-high three pinch-hits (in 10 at-bats), ranking second with a .300 average as a pinch hitter. All three of her pinch hits came against MAAC opponents. She batted .250 during the MAAC tournament with two of her four hits clearing the left-center field fence. She posted four home runs during the season, the first coming against Butler. Roche had an RBI in seven games with three contests sporting three RBI (St. Joseph’s, Manhattan, and Monmouth). She ended the regular-season with a three-game hitting streak (4 of 7), getting a hit in the second game against Iona and both ends of the Manhattan doubleheader.
2014: Molly Roche appeared in three games before an injury forced her out of the lineup early in the season. She earned time against Lamar as a pinch hitter and also came off the bench against East Carolina and nationally-ranked Georgia. In her first collegiate at-bat, Roche walked against Lamar. She would pick up two more at-bats against East Carolina and another versus Georgia.
Before Fairfield: Roche was a two-year captain at Panas High School where she contributed as an outfielder or first baseman. The coaching staff expects the New York native to add long ball power to the lineup and drive in runs from the middle of the lineup. She earned All-League honors in each of her first three years at Panas High School. She also is a member of the Frozen Ropes Force ASA team.
