Six Terriers Earn PL Postseason Honors
May 7, 2014 | Softball
May 7, 2014
Patriot League release | Coach Gleason's comments
2014 Patriot League Tournament Central
CENTER VALLEY, Pa. - Highlighted by Brittany Younan's Rookie of the Year award, the Boston University softball team had a total of six Terriers receive Patriot League postseason accolades, the conference announced Wednesday afternoon.
Senior outfielder Jayme Mask and the two sophomores from San Diego, designated player Lauren Hynes and pitcher Melanie Russell, were placed on the first team. Younan, senior first baseman Chelsea Kehr and freshman outfielder Moriah Connolly received second team honors after helping BU finish the regular season with a 32-19 overall record and 13-5 mark in the Patriot League.
Earning BU's ninth overall Rookie of the Year award and first since Kehr was tabbed in 2011, Younan finished fifth among Patriot League players with a .389 batting average in 51 starts. The Chico, California native scored 38 runs while knocking in 34 and counted 10 doubles, five triples and one home run among her 61 hits. The third baseman also stole 17 bases in 18 attempts on the year.
A native of Grafton, Massachusetts, Mask led BU with her third straight first team award and fourth overall All-Conference honor after batting a team-high .399. Named the America East Player of the Year in 2013, she swiped 33 bags and reached home 41 times. During the season, she set a Patriot League record with five stolen bases in a game.
Russell (9-3, 2.02 ERA) enters the Patriot League tournament with plenty of confidence after she posted first career perfect game last Saturday against Bucknell. A month-long injury kept her out of the running for Pitcher of the Year, as she finished the regular season as the only pitcher with more strikeouts than innings pitched (90 SO - 83.0 IP).
Hynes led the team with a .496 on-base percentage and is currently third in batting average at .341. She added six doubles and 12 RBIs while also posting a 14-13 record with a 3.54 ERA in the circle. Besides holding Harvard to one hit in a 2-1 victory, she limited PL Player of the Year, Lehigh's Morgan Decker (.409 avg, .724 slg%) to just two harmless singles in 11 at-bats, as BU won the weekend series against the Mountain Hawks.
A native of Florence, New Jersey, Kehr currently owns 16 doubles, second most in program history, and is batting .282 with 26 RBIs. She received her second career All-Conference honor. The outfielder Connolly (Dunedin, Florida) batted .333 with 23 stolen bases and five triples. Recipient of the at-large spot on the second team, Younan also tallied five triples to join her classmate.
All six women with the rest of the squad will open the Patriot League tournament on Thursday (May 8) as the No. 2 seed against No. 3 Bucknell. First pitch is slated for 2:30 p.m. at Lehigh.
2014 Softball All-Patriot League and Major Awards
Player of the Year - Morgan Decker, Lehigh
Pitcher of the Year - Emily Bausher, Lehigh
Defensive Player of the Year - Alexis Watanabe, Lehigh
Rookie of the Year - Brittany Younan, Boston University
Coach of the Year - Fran Troyan, Lehigh
First Team All-League
1B - Cassie Waggy, Lehigh, Jr.
2B - Alexis Watanabe, Lehigh, So.
SS - Cydnee Sanders, Bucknell, Jr.
3B - Morgan Decker, Lehigh, So.
C - Mariel Schlaefer, Colgate, So.
DP - Lauren Hynes, Boston University, So.
OF - Amanda Nguyen, Army, Sr.
OF - Jayme Mask, Boston University, Sr.
OF - Vicky Lattanzio, Lehigh, Fr.
P - Melanie Russell, Boston University, So.
P - Emily Bausher, Lehigh, Jr.
At-large - Jessica Calvini, Lehigh, So.
Second Team All-League
1B - Chelsea Kehr, Boston University, Sr.
2B - Jacee Almond, Bucknell, Fr.
SS - Emma Capetz, Lehigh, Jr.
3B - Kasey McCravey, Army, So.
C - Cheyanna Young, Bucknell, So.
DP - Colleen Ahern, Holy Cross, So.
OF - Moriah Connolly, Boston University, Fr.
OF - Kristen Zahn, Bucknell, Jr.
OF - Katie Bushee, Colgate, Fr.
P - Caroline Smith, Army, Fr.
P - Lara Bean, Bucknell, Fr.
At-large - Brittany Younan, Boston University, Fr.
