Wednesday, May 1, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – A year away from the diamond did nothing to slow down Western Washington senior first baseman Emily Benson, whose Player of the Year award leads the selections to the 2019 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Softball All-Conference Team.

Benson was the near-unanimous choice for the conference’s top honor after she put together a season where she finished the regular season hitting .448 and led the conference with 14 home runs, 35 walks and 44 runs batted in. Benson tied the GNAC career record when she hit her 45th home run against Western Oregon on Apr. 19 and was recently named to the NFCA’s Division II Player of the Year Top-25 watch list.

Benson also earned her third First Team All-GNAC selection. She was also selected in 2016 and 2017.

Northwest Nazarene sophomore Jordan Adams was selected as the Pitcher of the Year for the second consecutive year. Adams helped pitch the Nighthawks to their second straight GNAC Championships appearance, leading the league with a 1.81 earned run average. Amassing a 13-7 record, Adams has allowed 50 runs, 34 earned, on 50 hits with 141 strikeouts and a save. Adams threw one of three no-hitters this season, and the first complete-game seven-inning no-hitter in the GNAC since 2012, in a 9-0 shutout of CSU Pueblo on Feb. 7.

Pitchers were also the unanimous winners of the conference’s Freshman of the Year and Newcomer of the Year awards. Western Oregon’s Maddie Mayer was named the Freshman of the Year after a season that saw her finish the regular season tied for second in the GNAC with a 2.55 earned run average. With a 10-3 record, Mayer has allowed 39 runs, 33 earned, on 93 hits and just 17 walks in 90.2 innings. The 39 runs allowed is second fewest in the GNAC. Mayer was also named as an all-conference honorable mention.

Concordia junior Sally Bowles was selected as the Newcomer of the Year. The transfer from Monterey (Calif.) Peninsula College finished the regular season with 11 wins and is seventh in the GNAC with a 3.14 earned run average. In 140.2 innings, Bowles has allowed 75 runs, 63 earned, on 166 hits with 54 strikeouts. Bowles also received Second Team All-GNAC selection.

Central Washington’s Mike Larabee and Concordia’s Shelley Whitaker share the Coach of the Year. It is the third such award in four years for Larabee, who led the Wildcats to a 30-16 overall record during the regular season and the fourth regular-season title in his four-year tenure. The Wildcats’ 21 conference wins are the most for a GNAC team since 2012.

Now in her third season at Concordia, Whitaker led a team that was picked to finish last in the GNAC Preseason Coaches Poll to the No. 3 seed in this week’s GNAC Softball Championships. Whitaker saw the Cavaliers build three win streaks of five weeks or more and finish the regular season by winning seven of their last nine games to clinch the playoff berth.

Benson and Adams were two of nine unanimous selections to the all-conference first team. Also among the unanimous selections is Vikings’ senior pitcher Makinlee Sellevold, Central Washington junior third baseman Savannah Egbert, Concordia senior utility player Mckenzie Smith, Western Oregon sophomore outfielder Ayanna Arceneaux, Northwest Nazarene senior outfielder Anna Williams, Central Washington sophomore outfielder Katie Kastning and Northwest Nazarene senior designated player Kylie Orr.

Rounding out the first-team selections is Simon Fraser junior catcher Amanda Janes, Western Oregon senior second baseman Ryanne Whitaker, Saint Martin’s senior shortstop Sabrina Hicks and Saint Martin’s senior outfielder Lauren Diuco.

Western Oregon led teams with seven selections to the GNAC Softball All-Conference Team. Central Washington finished with six selections. Northwest Nazarene led teams in first-team selections with three.

2019 GNAC SOFTBALL ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Player of the Year: Emily Benson, Western Washington
Coach of the Year: Mike Larabee, Central Washington & Shelley Whitaker, Concordia
Pitcher of the Year: Jordan Adams, Northwest Nazarene
Freshman of the Year: Maddie Mayer, Western Oregon
Newcomer of the Year: Sally Bowles, Concordia

* - Unanimous Selection  
+ - First Team In 2018
# - Second Team In 2018  
& - Honorable Mention in 2018
$ - First Team in 2017  
@ - Second Team in 2017  
% - Honorable Mention In 2017
= - First Team in 2016  
^ - Second Team In 2016    
! - Honorable Mention in 2016
π – First Team in 2015