June 2, 2010
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Georgia Tech redshirt senior second baseman Jen Yee and freshman pitcher/designated player Hope Rush have been named Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-Americans, the National Fastpitch Coaches Association announced on Wednesday.
They become just the sixth and seventh NFCA All-Americans in program history. Yee earned just the third first-team citation, while Rush was a third-team pick. Rush is the first freshman to earn NFCA All-American honors in program history as well.
Yee’s 2010 awards also include ACC Player of the Year, 1st-Team NFCA All-Southeast Region and 1st-Team All-ACC. She was one of the final three for the USA Softball Player of the Year Award and is a finalist for the prestigious Honda Award, which will be announced later this week.
Yee reached base safely at least once in all 62 games this season and leads the nation in batting average (.568), slugging percentage (1.270), on-base percentage (.732), runs scored (93) and walks (88). She is also tied for first nationally with 29 home runs. Yee struck out just six times all season and was 21-for-22 in stolen base attempts, good for fourth in the ACC. Her 84 hits and 63 RBI led the league while her 15 doubles ranked third. She was a two-time Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Player of the Week and five-time ACC Player of the Week.
The North Delta, British Columbia native had 24 multi-hit and 17 multi-RBI games in the regular season and began the year hitting safely in 19 straight games. Yee was intentionally walked 31 times this year which is an NCAA single-season record.
Yee broke several school records this season. She surpassed Tara Knudsen’s career walks (119) record as well as Amy Hosier’s single-season walks mark (52). In addition, Yee took down current assistant coach Aileen Morales’ single-season runs record (73). Yee did it, however, in 24 less games than Morales. Yee also topped Morales’ career runs scored record (216), Knudsen’s career doubles record (45) and Whitney Haller’s single-season home runs (24) and total bases mark (171). Her batting average, slugging percentage and on-base percentage would all be NCAA records as well.
Rush, who was a semi-finalist for the USA Softball Player of the Year Award and the ACC Freshman of the Year and Tournament MVP, did it both offensively and defensively for the Yellow Jackets. In the circle, she went 28-8 with a 1.98 ERA. Her wins were first in the ACC, while the ERA was sixth lowest. Rush made 32 starts and had 28 complete games and eight shutouts. She also had a save and a .224 opponent’s batting average, which was good for eighth in the league. Of Rush’s eight shutouts, three come over ranked teams in No. 3 Florida, No. 16 North Carolina and No. 17 Texas A&M. The Stockbridge, Ga., native had three no-hitters to her credit and was a two-time ACC Pitcher of the Week. In league play, Rush went a perfect 12-0 with a 1.47 ERA and .183 opponent’s batting average.
At the plate, Rush batted .302 with a .659 slugging percentage and a .415 on-base percentage. She was second in the ACC and eighth in the nation with 20 home runs, while her 60 RBI rank second and 34th, respectively. Rush tied for fourth in the league in slugging percentage, third in total bases (118) and fifth in walks (35). Rush had 16 multi-hit and 17 multi-RBI games as well as a team-high 11 game-winning RBI. Her 20 round-trippers are tied for third on the all-time Georgia Tech single-season charts.
2010 Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I All-Americans
First Team
Pos. Name School
P Kenzie Fowler University of Arizona
P Danielle Lawrie University of Washington
P Jen Mineau Fordham University
C Chelsea Bramlett Mississippi State University
1B Meredith Hackett University of Illinois
2B Jen Yee Georgia Institute of Technology
3B Melissa Gonzalez University of Hawai’i
SS Katelyn Boyd Arizona State University
OF Alissa Haber Stanford University
OF Brittany Lastrapes University of Arizona
OF April Setterlund Boston University
UT/P Megan Langenfield University of California, Los Angeles
UT/Non-P/DP Niki Williams University of Washington
At-Large/UT-P Valerie Arioto University of California, Berkeley
At-Large/2B GiOnna DiSalvatore University of California, Los Angeles
At-Large/SS Jenn Salling University of Washington
At-Large/OF Kirsten Shortridge Louisiana State University
At-Large/UT-P Danielle Spalding University of North Carolina
Second Team
Pos. Name School
P Blaire Luna University of Texas
P Keilani Ricketts University of Oklahoma
P Jordan Taylor University of Michigan
C Stacie Chambers University of Arizona
1B Dorian Shaw University of Michigan
2B Amber Flores University of Oklahoma
3B Maggie Viefhaus University of Michigan
SS K’Lee Arredondo University of Arizona
OF Kelly Majam University of Hawai’i
OF Taylor Schlopy University of Georgia
OF Francesca Enea University of Florida
UT/P Charlotte Morgan University of Alabama
UT/Non-P/DP Jessica Shults University of Oklahoma
At-Large/2B Kayla Braud University of Alabama
At-Large/3B Alisa Goler University of Georgia
At-Large/C Meagan May Texas A&M University
At-Large/UT-P Nikki Nemitz University of Michigan
At-Large/C Melissa Roth University of Louisville
Third Team
Pos. Name School
P Whitney Kiihnl Lipscomb University
P Toni Paisley East Carolina University
P Sara Plourde University of Massachusetts
C Sam Marder The Ohio State University
1B Renae Sinkler Creighton University
2B Kara Nelson Illinois State University
3B Abby Olson Illinois State University
SS Lauren Grill University of Mississippi
OF Raven Chavanne University of Tennessee
OF Lauren Lindsay University of Tulsa
OF Rhea Taylor University of Missouri
UT/P Hope Rush Georgia Institute of Technology
UT/Non-P/DP Miranda Dixon University of Arkansas
At-Large/P Samantha Beasley San Diego State University
At-Large/P Stephanie Brombacher University of Florida
At-Large/OF Kat Dotson University of Tennessee
At-Large/P Kelsi Dunne University of Alabama
At-Large/SS Katie Fleury University of Notre Dame
