Tigers Claim Three Major Big 12 Awards
5/17/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 17, 2011
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Missouri softball team captured three major conference awards while having six recognized as All-Big 12 selections, as announced Tuesday afternoon by the Big 12 Conference. The six All-Big 12 honorees are the most since Mizzou had the same total in 2009. The awards and all-conference selections are voted on by all 10 Big 12 softball coaches.
For the second time as Mizzou's head coach, Ehren Earleywine was selected as the Big 12 Coach of the Year. Earleywine led the Tigers to their first regular season Big 12 Championship since 1997, with the Tigers finishing league play with a 15-3 record and the regular season at 46-7 overall. Missouri was selected to finish second in the preseason coach's poll and the team ranks as high as fourth in the country. The Coach of the Year honor is the third such award in Earleywine's career, as he was also the 2007 Big 12 Coach of the Year and picked as the 2005 ACC Coach of the Year.
Redshirt sophomore Chelsea Thomas was picked as the league's Pitcher of the Year following a brilliant 2011 campaign. With a 1.09 ERA in league play, the best amongst Big 12 pitchers, Thomas went 13-3 against her conference opponents while striking out 166 batters to 27 walks in 115.2 innings pitched. She had the lowest walks per seven innings total in conference play at 1.63, and her 10.05 strikeouts per seven innings was second best in the league. For the season, Thomas is tied for the second in the NCAA with a 0.81 earned run average to go with her 27-5 record. In 208.0 innings pitched, Thomas has 323 strikeouts – a Mizzou single season record – and just 39 walks while limiting hitters to a .145 average. Thomas is one of 10 finalists for USA Softball's Collegiate Player of the Year Award.
Senior Megan Christopher was dubbed co-Defensive Player of the Year, sharing the award with Texas A&M's Natalie Villarreal. Christopher has thrown out 42% (8-of-19) of attempted base stealers during Big 12 play and committed just one error for a .995 fielding percentage. During the non-conference season, Christopher didn't allow a single stolen base, and has thrown out 48% (10-of-21) of runners this year. Overall, she has a fielding percentage of .993 for the season with just two errors in 304 chances.
Earning first team All-Big 12 First Team honors for the Tigers were Thomas, sophomore Nicole Hudson, Abby Vock and Jenna Marston. It is the second career First Team honor for Marston, while Hudson earned Second Team recognition last year. It is the first All-Big 12 award for both Thomas and Vock.
Hudson and Thomas were two of the seven unanimous All-Big 12 First Team selections. Hudson hit .371 during conference play with a .420 on base percentage and a .565 slugging percentage. She hit two homers and doubled six times while driving in 14. For the season, Hudson has 11 home runs and 44 RBI to go with a .342 average.
Vock hit .357 during league action this year while hitting a team-best five home runs, scoring 10 times and driving in 10 runs. She also hit three doubles and posted a .786 slugging percentage, the highest amongst all Big 12 hitters in conference play.
With a .333 average, Marston finished second on the team with 21 hits during Big 12 play, with nine of those being doubles – more than any other player in the Big 12. She scored 18 runs and got on base at a .400 clip while also stealing three bases in as many attempts.
Rounding out the list for Missouri was senior Rhea Taylor and junior Ashley Fleming, who were named to the All-Big 12 Second Team. For Taylor, it is the fourth time in her career that she's been an All-Big 12 honoree, while this is the second straight season that Fleming has been recognized.
Taylor hit .302 during the conference season with seven runs scored. She also swiped eight bags in eight tries, most on the team. Fleming posted a .281 average in 18 conference games, scoring 11 runs to go with three doubles, four home runs and a 15 runs batted in – tied for fourth-most amongst Big 12 competitors.
Missouri opens up the postseason with a first round matchup against Illinois State on Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT. For the third straight season, the University of Missouri is hosting the first round of the NCAA Championship at University Field in Columbia, Mo. For more information, tune in to www.mutigers.com.
