Jessica Graziano

Position:
1B/3B
Height:
5-7
Class:
Junior
Hometown:
Pearl River, N.Y.
High School:
Pearl River
Prev School:
UMBC

Exercise and sport science major ... Transferred from Maryland-Baltimore County prior to her junior year

2003: As a junior, hit .231 with two doubles and nine RBIs in 65 at-bats... Started in 23 of the 37 games in which she saw action ... Had a .275 on base percentage and a .262 slugging percentage ... Slugged a season best two hits against Tennessee Tech on March 22, ending the game 2-for-3 with an RBI ... Had a pinch hit RBI single against UNC Wilmington on Feb. 19 ... Named to the ACC Academic Honor Roll

At UMBC: Played her freshman (2001) and sophomore (2002) years for the Retrievers after redshirting in 2000 ... Helped her team to the Northeast Conference titles and NCAA Tournament berths in both seasons ... Named first team Academic All-America as a sophomore and second-team All-NEC as a freshman ... Two-year team captain

At Pearl River (N.Y.) High School: Earned Louisville Slugger East Region All-America and all-state honors as a senior ... Also named Schultz Ford Rockland County Athlete of the Year, Rockland Journal Player of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year in her senior season ... Led her team to conference and regional championships in senior year ... Set nine school career records and two single-season records, including longest hitting streak with 35 games ... Four-time all-league and all-county selection ... Also played four years of soccer ... Recipient of the Margaret Metress Best Female Athlete Award

Personal: The daughter of Frances and William Graziano ... Born Jan. 27, 1981, in New York, N.Y. ... Has a twin brother, William, and an older brother, Anthony (27)

More on Graziano: Favorite pastimes are yoga and spinning ... After college, hopes to be a physical therapist in the sports medicine or oncology fields ... Works as a physical therapy technician at UNC Hospitals ... Favorite class at UNC has been Neuromuscular Control ... Favorite things about being a student-athlete at UNC are "learning in one of the best educational institutions and being able to play against the top teams in the country" ... Started playing softball at age 12 because her brothers played baseball ... Wears jersey No. 8 because "eight is great" ... If she could play another sport at UNC, she'd pick soccer ... Says the word that best describes her is "hardworking" and the words that best describe the team are "dedicated and hardworking" ... If she could trade places with anyone for a day, she'd pick a member of the 2003 UNC women's soccer team "to see how it feels to win an NCAA title" ... The greatest moment of her athletic career has been "being able to step on the field in the spring of 2002 after returning from two shoulder surgeries and a lot of hard work"