JMU's Alexander Named CAA Softball Player of the Year
Tim McDonnell
2018 Postseason Awards Show |
Championship Central |
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RICHMOND, Va. – James Madison sophomore
Odicci Alexander has been selected as the 2018 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Softball Player of the Year, headlining the league’s all-conference awards and honors announcement on Tuesday.
Alexander, who becomes JMU’s seventh straight Player of the Year award winner, was joined by JMU head coach
Loren LaPorte, who was named CAA Coach of the Year, while fellow Duke, freshman pitcher
Payton Buresch, was picked as the Rookie of the Year. Other major award winners include Hofstra sophomore
Sarah Cornell, who was voted Pitcher of the Year, becoming the school’s 10
th award recipient all-time, and Elon shortstop
Hannah Olson, who became the first Phoenix player to ever win CAA Defensive Player of the Year.
The All-CAA teams and awards were determined via a vote by the conference’s eight head coaches.
Originally from Boydton, Va., Alexander is just the second player in CAA history to win Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year honors in consecutive seasons, joining Stacy James of George Mason (2002-2003). The sophomore is batting .388 with 38 runs, eight doubles, 13 homers, and a team-best 47 RBI this season. She also serves as the Dukes’ primary starter in the circle, going 23-5 with a 1.95 ERA and 191 strikeouts. The right-hander leads the CAA with her wins total, ranks second in strikeouts, and is credited with 13 complete games as well as four saves in 194.1 innings of work.
Cornell becomes the first Hofstra player since 2013 to be named Pitcher of the Year, and the Pride’s 10
th recipient of the award all-time. After making the All-CAA second team and All-Rookie team as a freshman in 2017, the hard-throwing righty went 22-7 in the circle this season as a sophomore, leading the conference with 225 strikeouts and 199.2 innings pitched.
Olson is Elon’s first-ever recipient for one of the CAA’s major individual softball awards along with becoming just the second major award winner for the program all-time at the Division I level. The Yorktown, Va. product finished her senior season with a .936 fielding percentage, committing just 11 errors in 173 chances at shortstop. She started all 52 games for Elon this spring and batted .387 at the plate, collecting 63 hits, 16 doubles, and a team-high 36 RBI.
LaPorte took over the helm for JMU in 2018 and the first-year head coach, who spent the last five seasons as an assistant with the program, guided the Dukes to their fifth straight CAA regular season title with a 19-2 record in conference play. James Madison registered an overall record of 40-10 through the regular season, securing its sixth consecutive 40-win campaign, and seeks its CAA-best sixth straight NCAA Softball Championship appearance. The two-time defending CAA champion Dukes enter this week’s conference tournament ranked nationally in both major polls and serve as the host for the fifth straight year.
Buresch went 17-4 in the circle with a league-best 1.39 ERA for the Dukes during her first collegiate season. The freshman, who was named a Top 25 Finalist for the 2018 NFCA Division I Freshman of the Year award, has struck out 87 total batters in 141.1 innings of work. She is the second consecutive Rookie of the Year honoree from JMU (joining Alexander, who won the nod in 2017) and seventh award winner all-time for the Dukes.
In addition to the major awards announced on Tuesday, the conference also recognized its all-conference first and second teams, and the 2018 all-rookie squad.
2018 All-CAA Softball Teams
| First Team |
| Name |
School |
Year |
Position |
Hometown |
| Anna Steinmetz |
Delaware |
Jr. |
C |
Glen Mills, Pa. |
| Kristi DiMeo |
Drexel |
Fr. |
1B |
Turnersville, N.J. |
| Michaela Transue |
Hofstra |
Sr. |
2B |
Chenango Forks, N.Y. |
| Brook Miko |
Towson |
Sr. |
SS |
Ladera Ranch, Calif. |
| Morgan Tolle |
James Madison |
Sr. |
3B |
Hudson, Fla. |
| Kate Gordon |
James Madison |
So. |
OF |
Shenandoah, Va. |
| Kendyl Scott |
Towson |
Sr. |
OF |
La Quinta, Calif. |
| Kara Shutt |
Elon |
Sr. |
OF |
Greensboro, N.C. |
| Sarah Edwards |
Hofstra |
Sr. |
DP/UTIL/NP |
Bay Shore, N.Y. |
| Odicci Alexander |
James Madison |
So. |
UTIL/P |
Boydton, Va. |
| Sarah Cornell |
Hofstra |
So. |
P |
Westbury, N.Y. |
| Megan Dejter |
Towson |
Sr. |
P |
Silver Spring, Md. |
| Second Team |
| Name |
School |
Year |
Position |
Hometown |
| Kaitlyne Musa |
Hofstra |
Sr. |
C |
Miami, Fla. |
| Brittany Allocca |
Hofstra |
Sr. |
1B |
Stormville, N.Y. |
| Daria Edwards |
Towson |
Sr. |
2B |
Horsham, Pa. |
| Linda Rush |
Drexel |
So. |
SS |
Pittsburgh, Pa. |
| Taylor DuPree |
Charleston |
Sr. |
3B |
Evans, Ga. |
| Jordin Jones |
Charleston |
Sr. |
OF |
Inez, Texas |
| Nikki Michalowski |
Hofstra |
Sr. |
OF |
Philadelphia, Pa. |
| Brielle Pietrafesa |
Hofstra |
Sr. |
OF |
Pennsauken, N.J. |
| Nicole Stockinger |
Towson |
Jr. |
OF |
Olney, Md. |
| Dominique Travers |
UNCW |
So. |
DP/UTIL/NP |
Montclair, Va. |
| Payton Buresch |
James Madison |
Fr. |
P |
Downers Grove, Ill. |
| Sophie Dandola |
Hofstra |
Fr. |
P |
Seaford, N.Y. |
|
|
|
|
|
| All-Rookie Team |
| Name |
School |
Year |
Position |
Hometown |
| Payton Buresch |
James Madison |
Fr. |
P |
Downers Grove, Ill. |
| Sophie Dandola |
Hofstra |
Fr. |
P |
Seaford, N.Y. |
| Reyna de Jesus |
Delaware |
Fr. |
OF |
Fountain Hill, Pa. |
| Kristi DiMeo |
Drexel |
Fr. |
1B |
Turnersville, N.J. |
| Chayanna Gallardo |
Delaware |
Fr. |
C/UTIL |
Pueblo, Colo. |
| Sara Jubas |
James Madison |
Fr. |
INF |
McDonald, Pa. |
| Emily Langkamp |
UNCW |
Fr. |
P/UTIL |
The Woodlands, Texas |
| Ally Repko |
Elon |
Fr. |
3B |
Broadway, Va. |
| Gracyn Thrasher |
Charleston |
Fr. |
1B |
Douglasville, Ga. |
| Elena Woulfe |
Drexel |
Fr. |
C/INF |
Homer Glen, Ill. |
2018 Player of the Year: Odicci Alexander, James Madison
2018 Coach of the Year: Loren LaPorte, James Madison
2018 Rookie of the Year: Payton Buresch, James Madison
2018 Pitcher of the Year: Sarah Cornell, Hofstra
2018 Defensive Player of the Year: Hannah Olson, Elon