CAC Trio Named NFCA All-Americans

Posted: May 25, 2017

CAC Trio Named NFCA All-Americans

A trio of CAC softball players were named to the 2017 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division III All-America Team, announced Wednesday night during the NCAA Division III Championship banquet at the Sherato Hotel Downtown in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Salisbury had a pair of players selected, led by junior outfielder LeAnne Collins on the first team, while junior second baseman Annie Pietanza was selected to the third team. Christopher Newport junior shortstop Rachael Payne earned second team honors for the CAC champion Captains.

Collins, the CAC Player of the Year, was Salisbury's leadoff hitter throughout the year, batting a team-high .537 while slugging a team-best .787. Her key attribute was her speed, leading to a team-high seven triples, to go with 11 doubles and three home runs – one of which was an inside-the-park homer. Collins scored a team-best 48 runs and drove in 30 on the year.

Pietanza played in every game this season, spending much of the season at second base, and was one of the team's top hitters, with a team-high 50 runs driven in, while batting .414 – second on the team to only Collins. The Silver Spring, Md. native smashed a team-high-tying seven home runs, while ripping 14 doubles and a pair of triples.

Payne concluded the season with a .428 average for the Captains, who won the CAC's regular and post-season titles. Payne led the squad with 50 runs scored and tied for the team lead with 59 base hits.

2017 NFCA DIVISION III ALL-AMERICANS

FIRST TEAM

Pitcher	Hanna	Hull	Virginia Wesleyan College	Freshman
Pitcher	Lindsey	Thayer	St. John Fisher College	Junior
Catcher	Janae	Matos	Moravian College	Junior
First Base	Cassetty	Howerin	Virginia Wesleyan College	Junior
Second Base	Linzie	Lewis	East Texas Baptist University	Sophomore
Third Base	Jenna	George	St. Catherine University	Sophomore
Shortstop	Anna	Strien*#%	Luther College	Junior
Utility	Jayme	Perez	East Texas Baptist University	Senior
DP	Morgan	Smith	Rowan University	Junior
Outfield	Kaylee	Prather	University of Texas at Tyler	Senior
Outfield	LeAnne	Collins	Salisbury University	Junior
Outfield	Mallory	Klotz	Wisconsin-Whitewater	Junior
At-Large	Emily	Sabo	Kean University	Senior
At-Large	Jessica	Long*%	Averett University	Senior
At-Large	Melissa	Livermore*	University of Texas at Dallas	Sophomore

SECOND TEAM

Pitcher	Julie	Graf	St. Olaf College	Freshman
Pitcher	Josie	Novak	Moravian College	Junior
Catcher	Emily	Snow	Milwaukee SOE	Sophomore
First Base	Kirsten	Drobiak	Springfield College	Junior
Second Base	Katie	Mazierski	St. John Fisher College	Junior
Third Base	Liz	Thompson	Alfred University	Senior
Shortstop	Alyson	Shaw	Otterbein University	Sophomore
Utility	Marie	Collop	Berry College	Senior
DP	Cassie	Ruscz*#	Tufts University	Senior
Outfield	Cheyenne	Fletcher	Linfield College	Junior
Outfield	Jenna	Heffner	Penn State Berks College	Senior
Outfield	Ashley	Burrows	Luther College	Junior
At-Large	Maitlin	Raycroft	Texas Lutheran University	Junior
At-Large	Krista	Flugstad	St. Catherine University	Junior
At-Large	Rachael	Payne	Christopher Newport	Junior

THIRD TEAM

Pitcher	Morgan	Stratton*	Alma College	Senior
Pitcher	Samantha	Bratland	Luther College	Sophomore
Catcher	Lexi	Curt	Williams College	Junior
First Base	Savannah	Lee	Birmingham-Southern	Sophomore
Second Base	Annie	Pietanza	Salisbury University	Junior
Third Base	Leah	Brown	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Senior
Shortstop	Kiersten	Richardson	Virginia Wesleyan College	Junior
Utility	Stephanie	Caudle*	Rensselaer	Senior
DP	Haley	Crumpton	Birmingham-Southern	Sophomore
Outfield	Brittany	Deieso	Manhattanville College	Senior
Outfield	Haley	Morelli	Wisconsin-Whitewater	Senior
Outfield	Cheyenne	Thompson	University of Texas at Tyler	Sophomore
At-Large	Holly	Haberkorn	Benedictine University (Ill.)	Senior
At-Large	Alix	DeDreu	Thomas More University	Sophomore
At-Large	Shannon	McMahon	Kean University	Senior

* denotes 2016 All-American
# denotes 2015 All-American
% denotes 2014 All-American