Top Ten Finalists Announced for 2008 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the
Year
OKLAHOMA CITY,
Okla. ---The Amateur Softball Association, the National
Governing Body of Softball in the United States,
announced today the top ten finalists for the 7th Annual USA Softball
Collegiate Player of the Year Award. An initial “Watch List” was
released on January 30 and the list of 25 finalists was announced on
April 9. The USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, in its seventh
year, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by NCAA
Division I collegiate softball players across the country.
The ten
finalists for the 7th Annual USA Softball Collegiate Player
of the Year Award consist of five seniors, three juniors, one sophomore
and one freshman. Six conferences are represented on the list.
Top Ten
Finalists listed in alphabetical order, are:
Katie Burkhart
(Arizona State)
– Senior– Pitcher - San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Tonya Callahan
(Tennessee) – Senior – Infield – Holden, Mo.
Kaitlin Cochran
(Arizona State)
– Junior - Outfielder - Yorba Linda, Calif.
Megan Gibson (Texas
A&M) – Senior – Pitcher/First Base – Spring, Texas
Charlotte
Morgan (Alabama) – Sophomore –
Pitcher/Utility – Moreno Valley, Calif.
Stacey Nelson (Florida)
– Junior – Pitcher – Los Alamitos, Calif.
Angel Shamblin
(Houston) – Senior – Pitcher/Utility – Davie, Fla.
Jordan Taylor (Michigan)
– Freshman – Pitcher – Valencia, Calif.
Angela Tincher
(Virginia Tech) – Senior - Pitcher - Eagle Rock, Va.
Tammy Williams
(Northwestern) – Junior – Infield –
Roscoe, Mo.
On May 21 the
list will be cut to three and those final three players will travel to
Oklahoma City for the announcement of the winner of
the 7th Annual USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the
Year Award. The announcement will take place during the ‘WCWS Party at
the Park’ on Tuesday, May 27 at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium.
A replica of
the award will be placed in a permanent display in the ASA National
Softball Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, along with photos of the winner.
An additional replica of the award will be presented to the player’s
academic institution during an athletic event in the fall.
Tennessee’s
Monica Abbott took home the 2007 award before leading her team to the
Women’s College World Series best-of-three final series. Past winners of
the award include Stacey Nuveman (UCLA-2002), Osterman (Texas-2003,
2005, 2006) and Jessica Van der Linden (Florida State-2004).