Suffolk

Jaclyn Davis enters her ninth season as head coach of Suffolk’s softball team in 2021.

In addition to her coaching responsibilities, Davis serves as the department’s Associate Director of Athletics and the Senior Women’s Administrator. 

Davis made an immediate impact on the program sending Suffolk to the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament in back-to-back seasons, including the program’s first appearance in the league title game since 2006 in her first year at the helm in 2013. Under Davis, the Rams have not missed a GNAC Tournament and made three appearances in the championship series (2013, 2017, 2018).

In 2017, Davis solidified herself in the Rams’ record book as the winningest coach in program history with her 102nd win, an 8-0 shutout over Emerson March 30, 2017. She has gone to amass nearly 140 victories as her career record currently stands at 192-153 (179-124 at Suffolk).

Suffolk’s 2020 season, its last in the GNAC with a switch to the Commonwealth Coast Conference scheduled for 2020-21, was called short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Rams managed to get their Spring Break trip in where they compiled a 3-7 overall record. 

Davis had to rebuild her squad in 2019 and her roster 18-player roster was split in half with newcomers and returners. Despite bumps in the road, the Rams gained their way into the postseason after going 11-5 against conference counterparts. Suffolk's season ended early, the second round of the league's tourney to be exact. The 21-18 Rams matched a program-best six all-league honors highlighted by Jaclyn Flint's first-team nod. Kelly Keane and Caitlin Murphyrepresented the Rams on the second squad and Grace Boehler, Kennedy Reyes and Ashley Zulla picked up sots on the third team. 

With the most successful senior class in Suffolk history in uniform in 2018, Davis guided the Rams to their third GNAC regular season title in the last four seasons with a 22-2 league ledger. As the tournament top seed and host, Suffolk played its way into the championship series once again, but came up short against Johnson & Wales to complete the campaign, 31-7.

Delaney Sylvester capped off her stellar career and graduated as one of the most decorated players in Suffolk softball history. With her name scattered throughout the record books including atop the all-time hits list with 231 she was named a NFCA All-Region first-team selection and headline a group of all-conference honors as GNAC Player of the Year. Her sister, freshman Payton Sylvester, wasted no time making herself known as she took home GNAC Rookie of the Year honors to go along with a first-team all-league nod and a second-team all-region accolade. Taylor Holmes was also recognized on the regional level on the third team and earned a spot on the conference’s first team. Overall, Suffolk had five all-league honorees. 

Off the diamond, Holmes found herself in the record books for her academic success as the first-ever Google Cloud Academic All-American, just the second-ever Suffolk student-athlete across all sports to earn the recognition.

The 2017 season featured Suffolk’s fifth appearance in the conference championship series and first since 2013. Davis’ Rams secured the tournament’s third-seed after going 16-6 in the regular season versus their conference counterparts and surprised the field with thrilling comeback and extra-inning wins to force the if-necessary, winner take all game. The Rams came out on the wrong side, however, falling 15-5 to Johnson & Wales to conclude their campaign 29-17 overall. Individual Rams picked up multiple honors along the way highlighted by the program’s first-ever pair of Rams garnering NFCA Northeast First-Team honors in Jill Pulek and Delaney Sylvester. Pulek and Sylvester were joined by four teammates on the All-GNAC team to mark the most all-league players under Davis and tie the program’s record, which was set in 2005. Madison Eucalitto and Devlin Frost earned first-team recognition along with Pulek and Sylvester, while Jaclyn Flint and Ashley Zulla picked up third-team status.  

Davis and the Rams made history in 2016 as the winningest team in the 32-year history with 33 victories. The GNAC Coach of the Year led Suffolk to its second straight regular-season league title and hosting responsibilities of the conference championship. Along the way, Davis earned her 100th career coaching win and saw six student-athletes garner all-conference accolades including first-team selection freshman Jill Pulek. Pulek also grabbed a spot on the All-NFCA first-team, while Delaney Sylvester picked up third-team NFCA recognition.  

The Rams turned in one of their most impressive softball seasons in Davis' third campaign. Suffolk put together an 11-game win streak to open April and notched a league-best 17-5 GNAC record to earn the top-seeded into the tournament. After being eliminated, the Rams season continued as they were selected to the ECAC Division III New England Softball Championship Tournament. Along the way, four Rams earned All-GNAC honors highlighted by Delaney Sylvester, who also picked up second-team NFCA recognition. Sylvester was joined on the conference's first team with Kristen Young and Devlin Frost, while Nicole Rose earned a spot on the third team.   

Davis also serves as the Athletics Department's Senior Women's Administrator and Associate Director of Athletics. She oversees programming for Suffolk's student athletes and also the Student Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) while coordinating the department's facilities.

Prior to Suffolk, Davis served as Head Women's Softball Coach at Austin College in Sherman, Texas for the 2012 season. Davis guided the Kangaroos to a third-place finish in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC), the highest standing in program history, while advancing to the SCAC Tournament for just their second time.

Davis returns to Beacon Hill where she spent two seasons as an Assistant Softball Coach for the Rams during the 2008-09 seasons. Davis went on to coach as an assistant at Rutgers University in New Jersey for two seasons prior to taking over for Austin College last season.

Davis graduated from Post University in 2007 with a B.A. in Psychology. She earned her M.Ed from Boston University in 2008 with a focus in Sports Psychology and later earned a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study from BU in Coach Education-Exercise Science.

Davis was a four-year player at Post University where she earned National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) honors as an All-American Scholar Athlete in all four seasons. She was named Post University's Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2007, while also earning the Excellence in Psychology Award by the University while graduating with Summa Cum Laude honors. She was inducted into the Alpha Chi National Honor Society in 2005 and earned Dean's List honors in all four years, and was also named to the Who's Who Among American University and College Students while also earning an All-Academic selection by the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) for 2004 through 2007 seasons.