California University of Pennsylvania Athletics

Kerry Novak-Drilak was a four-year starting right fielder for the women’s softball team from 1994 through 1997.

A three-time all-conference and two-time all-region selection, she received National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-America honors following a 1997 season that culminated with the Vulcans winning its first of two consecutive NCAA II national championships.

Ending one’s athletic career by winning the highest possible championship is a special accomplishment and one Novak-Drilak understandably cherishes.

“At the beginning of my senior season I told people the only way they were going to get me off the field after my last game would be if we win the national championship,” she said. That was the only way I was coming off the field and it’s something I’ll obviously never forget.”

An exceptional defensive player, Novak-Drilak helped the 1994 team win the program’s first-ever NCAA Division II Regional championship. In 1995 she batted .338 and the Vulcans won 48 of 55 games.

During her junior season the Vulcans compiled a 45-5 overall record while winning the first of five consecutive PSAC titles and their second NCAA Regional crown in three years. Cal finished fifth at the national tourney.

Novak-Drilak batted a career-best .383 in 1997 and led the team with 47 RBI. She was named to the 1997 NCAA All-Tournament team after hitting a three-run homer in Cal’s opening game victory and knocking in the winning run in the title game, which capped a school-best 53-5 season. She also received GTE Academic All-American honors and was named the 1997 PSAC Scholar Athlete of the Year. Novak-Drilak also received NFCA Academic All-America honors for the second consecutive year.

Notably, Novak-Drilak committed just four errors during her career and had just one miscue over her final two seasons. She finished with a PSAC record 214 consecutive games played—a total that still ranks ninth in PSAC history. At the end of her career, she was among the PSAC leaders in five different offensive categories.

During Novak-Drilak’s career under head coach Rick Bertagnolli, the Vulcans compiled a 184-30 cumulative record with four PSAC-West titles, three NCAA Regional crowns, two conference titles, and the school’s first-ever national team championship. Cal won 69 of 70 PSAC-West games from 1994-97.

Novak-Drilak’s older sister, Erin, was a four-year starting, three-time all-conference second baseman for Cal U softball from 1989-1992. She also served as a graduate assistant coach in 1993 under former head coach Linda Kalafatis ’88, a 2001 Cal U Hall of Fame inductee.

The younger Novak believes watching her sister play at Cal and playing summer softball with several cal players and coaches gave her familiarity with the program.

“I kind of always knew in high school that if I was going to play softball in college it was going to be at Cal,” Novak-Drilak said. “It was not really a hard decision. I felt really comfortable coming in and had learned so much about softball from Cal’s players and coaches before I started. I don’t like change too much and this made for an easy transition.”

Kerry’s respect for her older sister is evident.

“Erin and I were two totally different players with different styles and I still think she was one of the better second basemen I have ever watched,” she said. “I felt honored to come and play at the same place and just watched the program get stronger and stronger.”

Individually, Novak-Drilak finished with a .330 career batting average, 203 hits, 51 walks, 110 RBI, 29 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 28 sacrifices and a .980 fielding percentage. She is quick to credit Bertagnolli for making her an elite player.

“When Linda left to coach at the Division I level I was a little disappointed but Rick was a perfect fit,” said Novak-Drilak. “He came in and pushed us hard from the beginning. He knew how to get the most out of us as players. He would make me so mad in practice that I would play better. Things could not have ended any better for me.”

Originally from Houston, Pa., and a graduate of Chartiers-Houston High School, Novak-Drilak was a starting third baseman as a freshman and then three-year starting pitcher for the perennial powerful Bucs’ softball team. She was the 1994 Advertiser Almanac Softball Player of the Year, as well as a volleyball standout.

After earning her bachelor’s degree from Cal U in elementary education, Novak-Drilak served four years as a reading teacher at Fairfield (Pa.) Middle School. For the past five years she has been a sixth-grade teacher at Allison Park Elementary School, in the Chartiers-Houston School District.

She praised Cal U’s Elementary Education department and signaled out emeriti faculty members Drs. Tony Saludis and Gary Kennedy ’58.

“I got the best education I think I could have possibly received anywhere and the professors were incredibly supportive,” she said. “Dr. Saludis and Dr. Kennedy would come to our games and were very encouraging. They did an excellent job of preparing me as a teacher. If anyone wants to be a teacher there’s no reason to go any further then California.”

Having attained the ultimate success on the softball diamond, Novak-Drilak has found professional happiness as an educator.

“I enjoy teaching and it’s a lot of fun,” she said. “It’s so nice to want to go to work and the kids challenge you and also make you laugh everyday. When you walk out the door at the end of the day you feel that you’ve accomplished something.”

Honored to receive the university’s highest athletic award, Novak-Drilak is also a fan of her alma mater’s remarkable growth and aesthetic improvement since she graduated.

“It’s a totally different place that’s absolutely amazing,” she said. I” thought it was wonderful when I was there 13 years ago and to come onto this campus now is just breathtaking. Dr. Armenti has done an incredible job with the campus.”

Kerry and her husband, Ben, reside in Houston, Pa. They are the proud parents of two daughters—20-month-old Taryne and one-month old Kiera.