University of Massachusets Athletics
Plourde Headlines Softball All-Conference Honors
May 10, 2011 | Softball
May 10, 2011
AMHERST, Mass. - Sara Plourde was named Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Year for the second straight year, headlining several UMass honorees when the Atlantic 10 Conference announced its softball regular season awards on Tuesday. The junior pitcher was also named to the All-Conference first team, while sophomore outfielder Cyndil Matthew was named to the second team. Freshmen Tiffany Meeks and Lindsey Webster were both named to the All-Rookie team, and Kyllie Magill and Webster were named Honorable Mention All-Conference.
Plourde's second Pitcher of the Year honor marks the sixth-straight year a UMass pitcher has won the award and 17th overall. Brandice Balschmiter won four in a row from 2006 to 2009. Kelly Daut (1994-95), Danielle Henderson (1997-99), and Kaila Holtz (2002-03) are the other multiple winners of the award in program history
Plourde ranks second in the nation in strikeouts and strikeouts per seven innings, going into the week of the A-10 Championship. The four-time A-10 Pitcher of the Week enters the tournament leading the conference with a 1.22 ERA overall, 26 wins, and 463 strikeouts. The junior from Bristol, Conn., has booked four no-hitters, three against conference opponents, and threw a perfect game against La Salle this season. She held opponents to a league-best .135 batting average. She also leads the league in shutouts (13) and complete games (35).
Joining Plourde on the All-Conference first team are Charlotte's Briana Gwaltney and Tenaya Tucker, Lauren Nacke of Dayton, Fordham's Jocelyn Dearborn, Samantha Pellechio and Jen Mineau, Maureen Wells of St. Bonaventure, Bernadette Moran and Dana Parks of Saint Joseph's, and Saint Louis' Kristin Nicoletti. Dearborn was named the A-10's Player of the Year.
Matthews earns her first All-Conference honor after a standout year in her first season as UMass' starting centerfielder. The Westfield, N.J. native leads UMass with a .323 batting average and was at her best in A-10 games, batting .439 in conference play with a .508 on-base percentage and a .544 slugging percentage. She has scored 22 runs on the season and leads the club with 13 stolen bases.
Joining Matthew on the second team are Charlotte's Katy Hackett and Whitney Williams, Dayton's Kathleen Maloof, Fordham's Jamie Labovick, Brooke Frey of St. Bonaventure, Monica Aguilar and Erin Gallagher of Saint Joseph's, and Rachel Knable, Stephanie Pasquale and Sarah Prezioso of Temple.
Meeks garners All-Rookie honors after batting .250 with five home runs and 16 RBIs in 33 starts. The outfielder from Salinas, Calif. had a .489 slugging percentage in Atlantic 10 play. Meeks hit a grand slam at Temple, broke a scoreless tie in the ninth inning with a two-run home run at Rhode Island, and in the regular season finale drove in the winning run with a single in the bottom of the eighth.
Webster made an immediate impact for the offense in her rookie season, ranking second on the team with a .304 batting average. The Northridge, Calif. native leads the team in home runs with seven, and also leads the Minutewomen with a .400 on-base percentage and a .578 slugging percentage. Webster also leads the way in A-10 play with five home runs and 14 RBIs, and for the season leads the team with 12 sacrifice bunts.
Magill, a two-time All-Conference second-teamer, takes honorable mention honors after posting a .301 batting average thus far and leads the team in both runs scored (24) and RBIs (24). In A-10 play, Magill hit .353 with a .430 on-base percentage. Both her overall and A-10 batting averages are the second-best among the conference's second basemen. Magill was named Academic All-Conference for the second time last week.
The No. 2-seeded Minutewomen open play at the A-10 Championship in Charlotte on Thursday with a second round game against the winner of No. 3 Saint Joseph's and No. 6 Dayton.
