California University of Pennsylvania Athletics

Fittingly, Lith Webb accompanies Danielle Penner as the first two Hall of Fame inductees from Cal U’s NCAA national championship women’s softball teams.

A sleek and powerful third baseman, Webb is the only Vulcan student-athlete to ever receive first team, national All-America honors four straight seasons.

Originally from Windsor, Ontario and a graduate of Kennedy Collegiate Institute, Webb played for Cal U from 1995 through 1998. She was the top hitter on the 1997 and 1998 NCAA Division II National Championship teams which were the only two NCAA national team titles in school history until this past women’s basketball season.

A past member of the Canadian Olympic team, Webb was as brilliant defensively in the field as she was an unstoppable offensive force at the plate.

Two of her whopping 30 school records include hits for a season (83 in '96) and runs scored in a season (52 in "95).

Nicknamed “Spider” Webb produced a .442 career batting average and an amazing 88 extra-base hits. Other career totals include 195 runs, 295 hits, 51 walks, 154 runs batted in, 50 doubles, 14 triples, 24 home runs and 42 stolen bases. Her career hit and run totals still rank among the top 20 in NCAA history eight years after her career concluded.

Making an immediate impact, Webb was Cal’s second-leading hitter as a freshman in 1995 with a .462 batting average with five home runs and team-high 12 stolen bases.

As a sophomore, Webb batted .a school-record .494 and led the Vulcans in five other offensive categories as Cal won its second NCAA Regional title in three years and second PSAC softball title ever. She also had a school-record 83 hits.

In 1997, Webb led all Vulcan hitters for a second straight season with a .429 batting average as well as six other offensive categories. While winning the first NCAA national championship, Webb helped the Vulcans compile a school and PSAC single-season 53-5 overall record.

Remarkably, the only season Webb did not bat over .400 was her senior season when she hit .386 but still led the team in seven offensive categories. A model of consistency at the plate or in the field, Webb made just 18 errors in 211 games.

Cal’s combined overall record during the Webb-Penner seasons under Head Coach Rick Bertagnolli was 193-24 (.889). Six years after her collegiate playing days, Webb and Bertagnolli remain close.

“Rick still calls me every so often to tell me about the team and he always seems to call when I am thinking about him or the team,” Webb said. “There isn’t anyone not close to Coach B. I remember President Armenti asking me what it was like to play for Rick after we won our first national championship. I told him that coach was really like our dad and you could always count on him to be there for you.”

Webb was also a four-time all-conference third baseman that was named to the 1997 and 1998 national all-tourney teams. She was an integral part of an unprecedented Vulcan softball dynasty that won 80 straight PSAC-West games and scored the winning run in each of Cal U’s national title wins, which were 2-1 victories over the University of Wisconsin-Parkside (1997) and Barry University (1998).

Though the second national title rightfully gave Cal U dynasty status, Webb fondly recalled the 1997 championship game.

“They (Parkside) had the number one rated offense and we had the number one defense,” Webb said. “That game was so intense and we had to work so hard. We did not have a vindictive rivalry with Parkside but we were just both very good teams. It came down to the end and I just remember that every play we worked on in practice we seemed to use at the national tournament that year.”

Defending the national title proved both difficult and rewarding.

“Coach always told us that we had a bull’s eye on our back that last year,” Webb said. “It was hard because all the other teams were gunning for us. But we were the only team in the post-season to end its season with a victory and that’s special.”

She earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration and Lith now resides in Toronto, Canada, where she is an assistant manager of an American Eagle. Even in another country, Webb’s western Pennsylvania ties come into play almost daily at work.

“Our company is based out of Pittsburgh and recently at a meeting our vice president knew all about Cal,” Webb said. “The atmosphere and a lot of time the accents are the same.”

Just as Penner, Webb is proud of her induction but wishes it was a team induction as opposed to an individual matter.

“Rick called me on Canadian Thanksgiving Day and told me about the induction and that he thought he finally had a way to get me to come back," said Webb. “It’s a great honor but made me feel instantly old. The hall of fame is an individual thing but I wish the whole team could be inducted.”

Though unable to attend the banquet, Webb’s memories of Cal remain positive and cherished.

“My time at Cal was the best ever,” said Webb. “It is ironic how many things happen in life now that make you recall something from your playing days. You go to college with getting a degree being the first thing n your mind but there is also that balancing of time to enjoy a quality life and we had a very good time. I received a good education and played on two national championship teams.”