Thursday, May 23, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – After a banner year where she ranked among the regional and national leaders on offense, Western Washington senior Emily Benson has been named a Division II softball All-American by both the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) and Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA).

Benson was named to the second team on both squads as a first baseman. Western Oregon sophomore Ayanna Arceneaux was named a Second Team NFCA All-American and an honorable mention to the D2CCA team, both at outfield. In addition, Northwest Nazarene senior Kylie Orr was an honorable mention on the NFCA squad at a utility player.

The All-American designation is the latest in a long string of honors for Benson, who was named both the GNAC Player of the Year and D2CCA West Region Player of the Year and was a top-10 finalist for the NFCA Division II Player of the Year award. Benson concluded her stellar four-year career with a record-breaking senior season. She set WWU single-season records batting average (.448), on-base percentage (.567), slugging percentage (.896), OPS (1.463) and home runs (14). With the Division II postseason still going, she ranks No. 6 in the nation in slugging and on-base percentage.

In addition, Benson tied the GNAC career record for home runs at 45.

Arceneaux finished the season leading the GNAC and ranked 14th in Division II with a .460 batting average. She finished fourth in the GNAC in hits (64), tied for fifth in runs scored (35) and was among four GNAC players with four triples. Arceneaux helped lead Western Oregon to its first NCAA Division II Softball Championship appearance since 2014.

In splitting time between first base and the designated player position, Orr finished the year with a .386 batting average and .557 slugging percentage. She finished ranked sixth in the GNAC with 61 hits and was tied for fourth with 12 doubles.

In addition to the All-American honors, both Arceneaux and Orr were consensus First Team All-West Region selections by the NFCA and D2CCA.

The selections of Benson, Arceneaux and Orr are the first to the NFCA Division II All-America Team for their respective schools and the first selection to the D2CCA All-America Team for Western Washington. Arceneaux is the second all-time selection to the D2CCA All-America Team for Western Oregon.