FIU Athletics

Coach Gwydir on Jennifer: “JP is the most feared hitter in our lineup.  Last season she proved herself to be one of the best hitters in the Sun Belt Conference.  Behind the plate, she is a solid catcher whose strong arm will force runners to think twice about trying to steal on her.”

Junior (2005): Solidified herself as one of the best power hitters in the conference with a career season in which she was named Second-Team All-Sun Belt... Led the team in home runs (7), six of which came during Sun Belt play to rank second in the conference... Also led FIU in RBIs (25), slugging percentage (.458) and finished second in hitting (.277) and runs scored (22).  Has perhaps the biggest hit of her career came against eventual Pac-10 Champions Oregon State (2/18), in which she belted a three-run shot over the left field wall in the first inning to lift the Golden Panthers to a 5-2 win over the then-19^th-ranked team in the country ? marking FIU’s first-ever victory against a Pac-10 squad... Enjoyed the team’s longest hitting streak of the season (10 games) and had 12 multi-hit and a team-high five multiple-RBI games... Also drove in three runs in a 2-for-4 performance against Mercer (2/11)... Had home runs in consecutive games of a double header against New Mexico State (5/8), including the backend of FIU’s first-ever back-to-back homers, hit off of Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year, Sarah Seagraves, during the fourth inning of a 2-0 win in game one... Posted FIU’s only run in a four-game series versus then-No. 14 Louisiana-Lafayette with a solo homer off All-American Brooke Mitchell to pull the Golden Panthers within one at 2-1 in the sixth inning... Displayed late-inning heroics in a pair of nine-inning affairs at Middle Tennessee; hitting a game-winning home run in the top of the ninth of Saturday’s first game (4/30), followed by hitting a game-tying two-run shot in the top of the seventh and scoring the winning run in the top of the ninth after getting on with a two-out double off the center field wall in the series finale (5/1)... One of three players on the team to hit over .300 in conference action.

Sophomore (2004): Increased her batting average almost 100 points from freshman season... Second on the team in on-base percentage, and fourth in average, runs batted in and home runs... Produced eight multi-hit games, fourth-best on the team... Hit a three-run single in the bottom of the fourth inning against Rhode Island (3/9), giving FIU an eight-run advantage leading to a mercy-rule victory... Followed that game with a three-RBI performance on the first day of the Blue & Gold Coca-Cola Classic (3/12), including two doubles and a pair of RBIs in a 4-2 win over Virginia Tech and the game-winning RBI in a 6-4 win over Miami (Ohio)... Gave team the lead in the bottom of the sixth in the championship game two days later with a two-run double... Had 2-for-3 performances on back-to-back days of the FAU Parent’s Weekend Tournament in wins against Akron (3/19) and Oklahoma State (3/20)... Came up with a pair of two-hit games in doubleheader against Florida A&M (3/26)... Played well in the opening games of a pair of doubleheaders with North Texas, going 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI on Saturday (4/10), and then went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI in the first game on Sunday (4/11).

Freshman (2003): Split time with Cynthia Turek at first base... Third on the team in fielding percentage (.979)... Committed just four errors in 187 chances... Fifth on the squad in walks (14).

Prior to FIU: Lettered four years at Suncoast High School... Batted .450 as a senior and .429 as a junior... Chargers were district and regional champions her sophomore season... Named team’s Co-MVP as a junior... Earned Best Defensive Player honors as a senior and Best Offensive accolades as a sophomore and junior... Graduated in the top 10 percent of her class.

Personal: Born March 11, 1984... Parents are William and Catherine Powell... Has a younger sister, Caitlen (17)... Volunteers 20 hours per week during the off-season with the Animal Rescue League... A pre-med major with aspirations of becoming an orthopedic surgeon.