BC's Morris Tabbed NFCA All-American

BC's Morris Tabbed NFCA All-American

Heads List of 11 All-Region Honorees

STARKVILLE, Miss. --- Bridgewater College designated player Emily Morris was recently named to the All-America Third Team by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA).  The only ODAC student-athlete on any of three All-America teams, Morris heads a list of 11 conference student-athletes named to the NFCA Atlantic All-Region Teams.

Morris is joined by Virginia Wesleyan College pitcher Brittaney Brown and second baseman Kristy White and Randolph College outfielder Brittany Willingham on the All-Region First Team.

Five players earned a selection to the All-Region Second Team, including a third Marlin in catcher Jaclyn Quinn.  She was joined by Guilford College outfielder Kimberley Keys, a pair from Lynchburg College in pitcher/designated player Katie Bruce and outfielder Lauren Duguay, and Randolph first baseman Lindsay Cross.  Bridgewater second baseman Hillary Rees and Roanoke College outfielder Leona Rainey earned recognition on the All-Region Third Team.

A junior from Powhatan, Va., Morris continues to add to a growing list of honors for the 2010 season, including a first team All-Conference selection and a first team CoSIDA Academic All-District nod.  She kept the BC offense churning by hitting a .429 clip (sixth in the conference) with a team-best 57 hits (fourth in the ODAC).  She finished third in the ODAC with a 737 slugging percentage, third in total bases with 98, and fifth in on-base percentage at .500.  She was also fourth in runs batted in (47) and runs scored (42).

Brown, from Chesapeake, Va., won the ODAC Pitcher of the Year award for the second time.  She finished tops in all major pitching categories including earned run average (1.02), wins (25), saves (4), shutouts (8) innings (205.2) and strikeouts (218).  She placed in the top-15 in the nation in each of those categories (except for innings; no ranking available), placing tied for eighth in saves and tied for 11th in wins.

Also a Chesapeake-native, White put the Marlins’ offense into motion from the top of the order.  She finished second in the ODAC with a .470 batting average.  She led the league in on-base percentage (.568) and walks (29), which also placed 14th and 13th in the country, respectively.  White tied for fourth in the ODAC in stolen bases (14).

Willingham, from Glen Burnie, Md., burst on the scene in her rookie campaign to lead the ODAC and place fifth nationally with a .517 batting average.  Her .558 on-base percentage ranked second in the conference and 18th in the country.  Willingham led or ranked near the top in the ODAC in several other offensive categories including hits (76; 1st), doubles (19; t-1st), slugging percentage (.721; 4th), runs scored (47; t-2nd), total bases (106; t-1st), and stolen bases (14; t-4th).

Among the ODAC’s honorees and on the second and third teams, Duguay earned the 2010 ODAC Player of the Year.  She led the league with a .520 batting average against conference opponents with six homers and 46 total bases.  Duguay finished with a .422 overall batting average, and earned the ODAC/Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete Award as a communication studies major.

Fellow Hornet Bruce won 15 games from the circle, the second most in the ODAC, and posted a third-best 2.72 earned run average.  At the dish, she batted .339 with six homeruns.

Virginia Wesleyan’s Quinn took well to her first season behind the plate.  She topped the ODAC in runs scored (51) and runs batted in (53) while tying for first with 106 total bases.  She was also fifth with a .432 batting average.  Bridgewater’s Rees also found herself at or near the top in several categories.  She led the league in triples (4), tied for second in runs scored (47), placed third in stolen bases (15), and tied for fourth in walks (20).

Randolph’s Cross backed up her 2009 ODAC Player of the Year season with a second standout campaign.  The senior batted .426 (7th in the ODAC) and ranked near the top of the conference in several categories including hits (60; 3rd), RBI (48; t-2nd) and doubles (18; 3rd).

Guilford’s Keys had a breakout second season in Greensboro.  She posted a .463 batting average (second in the ODAC) that included a second-best .508 mark against league opponents.  Keys placed second in total hits (63) and fifth in RBI (46) and total bases (94).  Roanoke’s Rainey earned the 2010 ODAC Rookie of the Year award.  She hit at a .466 clip (third in ODAC), and led the league and ranked 10th nationally with 30 stolen bases in 31 attempts.  Rainey also registered a .530 on-base percentage.

For a look at the complete 2010 NFCA All-American Teams, click HERE, and for the full NFCA All-Region Teams, click HERE.  You can also visit the NFCA for more information at www.nfca.org.  For more information on ODAC softball, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the ODAC on the Internet at www.odaconline.com