JUNE 5 UPDATE
From Oklahoma City
MARGIE WRIGHT
Retiring Coach Wright Honored by the County of Fresno
FRESNO, Calif. – Fresno State softball coach Margie Wright was honored Tuesday by the County of Fresno for her illustrious career at Fresno State, as Supervisor Henry Perea presented Wright with a proclamation stating that the month of June 2012 is Margie Wright month in Fresno County.
Wright announced back in May that she would be retiring at the end of the 2012 season. The Fresno County Board of Supervisors came together Tuesday to honor Wright for not only her success on the softball diamond, but for bringing new opportunities to young women throughout her 27-year career at Fresno State.
“We applaud Ms. Wright for her outstanding accomplishments in the community,” Perea said during the presentation.
In a news release prior to the presentation, Perea said, “Coach Wright has done so much for our community. We cannot thank Coach Wright enough for her positive influence on our future leaders, university and softball team. She has done so much to shine a positive light on Fresno County,”
Wright said that this recognition was very special to her.
“It’s bittersweet, but it’s been 27 wonderful years,” Wright told the board about her retirement after thanking them. “The one thing I want to do is to still continue to help young women, and young men for that matter, find their way because I think sports are a good avenue to go down and helps us become better citizens.
“I think if I’ve done anything, that’s the one thing I hope I’ve done.”
In 27 seasons at Fresno State, Wright led the Bulldogs to a 1,294-450-1 (.742) record, the Women’s College World Series 10 times and the school’s first-ever national championship in any team sport in 1998.
Over the course of her 33-year coaching career, which included six seasons at Illinois State (1980-85), she compiled a 1,457-542-3 (.728) record. Wright is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division I softball history.
Fresno State Athletics will celebrate Wright’s accomplishments and iconic career on Sunday, June 10 at 1 p.m. with a ceremony a Bulldog Diamond.
NPF APP
Nashville- Available now in the Apple App and Google Play stores is the National Pro Fastpitch app. Using this app, developed by Onseeker Technologies, fans can receive information on their favorite teams and players. One of the apps most interesting features is the ability to stream all of the games live.
This app will allow fans to stay alert and up to date with the latest that National Pro Fastpitch has to offer. Features available with the release of this app will include: rosters for each team, player bios, full 88 game league schedule, latest NPF news, and more. Fans can also use the app to directly connect with Fastpitch’s Facebook and Twitter pages.
COACH OPENING The College of Charleston is hiring a full time pitching coach effective
immediately.
Please contact head coach
Shelly Hoerner at hoerners@cofc.edu
COACHING STAFF OF YEAR
Valdosta State Named 2012 Division II National Coaching Staff of the Year
June 4, 2012
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Head coach Thomas Macera and assistant coaches Lindsay Campana and Stephanie Carlson of the 2012 NCAA Division II National Champions Valdosta State have been named as the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division II National Coaching Staff of the Year, the Association announced on Monday.
The Blazers went 58-5 overall and 26-1 in the Gulf South Conference to clinch conference regular-season crown. The Blazers did not lose a conference game until the final day of the regular season when their record-breaking 36-game win-streak came to an end.
In the postseason, Valdosta won its fourth consecutive GSC tournament title and its seventh overall with a perfect 5-0 record. In the regional round, the Blazers won the first two games before falling in the first game of the final to Rollins, forcing an “If Necessary Game.” In the winner-take-all final, Valdosta grinded out a 1-0 win to move on to the super regionals for the third time in four years.
In the super regionals, the Blazers swept Florida Southern in two games to advance to the national championship. The appearance in the final eight marked the second time in three years that Valdosta advanced to the national championship.
The Blazers dropped their opening game of the national tournament to defending champions UC San Diego, forcing them into the elimination bracket. Valdosta went on to win four games in three days, including beating Kutztown twice, to advance to the program’s second national title game. In the championship, the Blazers avenged their earlier loss to UC San Diego and topped the Tritons, 4-1, for the first softball national championship in school history.
In just seven seasons as a head coach, including the last six with Valdosta, the 2012 GSC Coach of the Year has amassed an impressive career record of 342-92 overall and a 342-85 record at Valdosta. In his six seasons in Valdosta, Macera has never won less than 41 games and has won 50-plus games on three separate occasions, including this season.
For their work this season, Macera and staff also earned the South Region Coaching Staff of the Year award.
Other regional winners this season were:
Atlantic Region – Kutztown University
Head Coach: Judy Lawes
Assistant Coach: Larry Chester & Don Justus
Record: 52-7 (19-1 PSAC)
Kutztown’s 2012 campaign was a record breaking one in which it won 50-plus games for the first time in program history. The Golden Bears captured the PSAC East Division regular-season, the Atlantic Region 1 and Atlantic Super Regional titles this season. After reaching the National Championship for the first-time in program history, Kutztown ended it season in the national semifinals, where it fell to eventual national champion Valdosta.
Central Region – Augustana College (SD)
Head Coach: Gretta Melsted
Graduate Assistants: Michael Mook & Kelsey Thompson
Record: 53-12 (22-4 NSIC)
After finishing second in the NSIC in both the regular season and conference tournament, Augustana finally broke through the glass ceiling in the NCAA tournament, winning both the Central Regional 2 and Central Super Regional Titles. After a 5-0 run through the first two rounds, the Vikings advanced to the National Championship for the first time since 1998.
East Region – Southern Connecticut State University
Head Coach: Lisa Barbaro
Assistant Coaches: Paul Raccio
Record: 43-13 (24-6 NE-10)
Southern Connecticut captured the Northeast 10 regular-season championship in 2012, before a disappointing fourth-place finish in the league tournament. The loss, however, made the Owls more determined and they went 5-1 in the first two rounds of the national tournament. Southern Connecticut also advanced to it first National Championship this season, where it went 1-2.
Midwest Region – University of Indianapolis
Head Coach: Melissa Frost-Fisher
Assistant Coaches: Sara Anderson & Kathy Blanchard
Graduate Assistants: Ashley Balazs & Kacy Kestner
Record: 50-9 (28-6 GLVC)
Indianapolis posted the fourth lowest staff ERA in the nation this season and that helped them capture the GLVC East championship and its first-ever tournament title. The Greyhounds earned the No. 1 overall seed in the Midwest and hosted a NCAA regional for the first time in school history; they went on to finish third at the event.
Southeast Region – Flagler College
Head Coach: Kristen Overton
Assistant Coach: Sam Boatner
Record: 39-20 (11-9 PBC)
Flagler was one of the hottest teams in the postseason this year and advanced to its first National Championship as the seventh seed out of the Southeast. After a disappointing first-round exit from the Peach Belt tournament, the Saints went 3-0 in their regional and then went 2-1 against perennial power North Georgia to capture its first super regional crown.
South Central Region – University of Central Oklahoma
Head Coach: Genny Stidham
Record: 46-8
Central Oklahoma had a breakout year and posted a record 35-game win streak during the regular season. Despite being an independent for the 2012 season, the Bronchos’ impressive resume earned them the two-seed in the South Central region and the opportunity to host a regional. After winning their regional, Central Oklahoma took two of three games from Angelo State to advance to the National Championship for the first time since 2006. The Bronchos went 2-0 in Louisville before falling twice to defending champion UC San Diego in the national semifinal.
West Region – University of California, San Diego
Head Coach: Patti Gerckens
Assistant Coach: Allison May, Jessica Millsap, Sara Robinson & Nicole Willis
Volunteer Assistant: Katrin Gabriel
Record: 45-23 (22-9 CCAA)
The 2011 national champion UC San Diego almost made it two in a row this season, after advancing to its second national title game in as many years. The Tritons finished fourth in the CCAA during the regular-season, but battled back to win its first-ever conference tournament title. Despite losing its first game in both the regional and super regional rounds, UC San Diego proved its toughness by winning both and advancing to the national championship for the second consecutive season. At the national tournament, the Tritons once again suffered an early loss, but battled back to finish as national runner-up.
Softball Places Four on All-Louisiana Teams; Fico Pitcher of the Year
BATON ROUGE – The LSU softball team picked up a quartet of All-Louisiana selections highlighted by Rachele Fico’s pitcher of the year award Sunday as announced by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association [LSWA].
Four days after being selected as LSU’s 14th NFCA All-American, Fico became the fifth Tiger hurler to notch the state’s top award. Dani Hofer was the last LSU pitcher to earn this honor back in 2007.
During the season, Fico racked up six Louisiana Pitcher of the Week picks during the season. She capped her junior campaign with a 20-13 record and a sparkling 1.12 ERA. She fired 13 shutouts, racked up 221 strikeouts and held opponents to a .183 hitting clip. In Fico’s 13 losses, she received only 10 runs of support.
Fico was joined by Ashley Langoni on the All-Louisiana First Team. She was LSU’s triple-crown winner with a .265 batting average, six home runs and 31 RBIs. Langoni wrapped up her career among the program’s top 10 with 29 career home runs and 132 career RBIs.
Brittany Mack came away with an All-Louisiana Second-Team selection after she put together a 16-12 mark and a 2.12 ERA. She recorded her 600th career strikeout during LSU’s 1-0 victory over South Florida in an elimination game at the Women’s College World Series. Mack turned in signature performances with a four-hit shutout at No. 2 Florida and rolled to 17 Ks versus No. 9 Missouri in game two of the NCAA Super Regionals.
Juliana Santos notched All-Louisiana Honorable Mention status. She finished third on the team with a .250 hitting ratio and 22 RBIs. The Newman, Calif., product was one of two Tigers to produce 40 hits during the 2012 season. Santos finished her career with 99 runs scored to rank 15th in program history.
LSU finished its inaugural season under head coach Beth Torina with a 40-25 record and secured the program’s third trip to the Women’s College World Series. It marked the 14th time in 16 seasons that the Tigers finished with at least 40 victories since softball was reinstated in 1997.
2012 All-Louisiana Collegiate Softball Team
All-Louisiana First Team
Position, Name, School
P, Rachele Fico, LSU
P, Jordan Wallace, Louisiana-Lafayette
C, Sarah Draheim, Louisiana-Lafayette
1B, Matte Haack, Louisiana-Lafayette
2B, Paige Cormier, Louisiana-Lafayette
SS, Nerissa Myers, Louisiana-Lafayette
3B, Ashley Ray, Nicholls State
OF, Ashley Langoni, LSU
OF, Christi Oregeron, Louisiana-Lafayette
OF, Katie Smith, Louisiana-Lafayette
OF, Claire Terracina, McNeese State
DP, Ashley Modzelewski, McNeese State
UTL, Melanie Goff, Louisiana Tech
All-Louisiana Second Team
Position, Name, School
P, Ashley Brignac, Louisiana-Lafayette
P, Brittany Mack, LSU
C, Cassandra Barefield, Northwestern State
1B, Janel Salanoa, Louisiana-Monroe
2B, Ashley Bertot, Nicholls State
SS, Daniele Wilson, Louisiana College
3B, Natalie Fernandez, Louisiana-Lafayette
OF, Briana Cherry, Louisiana-Lafayette
OF, Alanna DiVittorio, McNeese State
DP, Erin Kipp, Louisiana Tech
All-Louisiana Honorable Mention
Position, Name, School
P, Tiffany Denham, McNeese State
C, Meghan Gomez, Southeastern Louisiana
1B, Janna Frandup, Louisiana Tech
1B, Brianna Rodriguez, Northwestern State
2B, Stephanie Jaeger, Louisiana College
SS, Juliana Santos, LSU
OF, Meggie Burkett, Louisiana College
DP, Ashton Bennett, Nicholls State
Specialty Awards
Hitter of the Year: Christi Orgeron, Louisiana-Lafayette
Pitcher of the Year: Rachele Fico, LSU
Co-Newcomer of the Year: Melanie Goff, Louisiana Tech & Matte Haack, Louisiana-Lafayette
Freshman of the Year: Jordan Wallace, Louisiana-Lafayette
Coaches of the Year: Stefni and Michael Lotief, Louisiana-Lafayette
Vote Breakdown of Specialty Awards
Hitter of the Year: Orgeron [Lousiana-Lafayette] 13; Melanie Goff [Louisiana Tech] 1.
Pitcher of the Year: Rachele Fico [LSU] 8; Ashley Brignac [Louisiana-Lafayette] 6.
Newcomer of the Year: Melanie Goff [Louisiana Tech] 5; Matte Haack [Louisiana-Lafayette] 5; Ashley Bertot [Nicholls State] 2; Samantha Hamby [Louisiana-Monroe] 2.
Freshman of the Year: Jordan Wallace [Louisiana-Lafayette] 12; A.J. Andrews [LSU] 1; Haylie Wilson [Louisiana-Monroe] 1.
Coach of the Year: Stefni and Michael Lotief [Louisiana-Lafayette] 7; Beth Torina [LSU] 4; Mark Rosier [Louisiana College] 3.
