Wednesday, May 10, 2023

PORTLAND, Ore. – She helped lead Saint Martin’s to a second-place regular season finish and a berth in the GNAC Softball Championships. Now Saint Martin’s freshman outfielder Haley Agena leads five GNAC selections to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-West Region Team.

Agena was the lone first-team selection from the conference. One of two freshmen named to the All-GNAC First Team, Agena led the conference with a .410 batting average and five triples in 44 games. She finished the year tied for third in the conference with 35 runs scored, fourth with 59 hits and fifth with 80 total bases.

Conference champion Northwest Nazarene picked up a pair of second-team selections in senior outfielder Maia McNicoll and senior utility/pitcher Tori Hensley. Western Washington senior pitcher Mareena Ramirez also earned second-team honors as did Simon Fraser junior outfielder Megan Duclos.

McNioll and Hensley helped lead the Nighthawks to the GNAC title and a 3-0 record at the GNAC Championships, earning the conference’s lone berth to the NCAA Championships. McNicoll, the GNAC Player of the Year, enters the regional with a .310 batting average and leads the conference with 45 RBIs. She also ranks second in the GNAC with 11 home runs, third with 93 total bases, fifth with 12 doubles, seventh with 31 runs scored and ninth with 48 hits.

Hensley enters the West Regional ranked second in the GNAC with a 1.90 ERA and third with a .387 batting average. She is among the toughest batters in Division II to strike out, ranking sixth with just three strikeouts in 163 at-bats. Hensley ranks second in the conference with 63 hits and seventh with 72 total bases. In the circle, Hensley is fourth in the GNAC with 15 wins, fifth with a .233 opponent batting average and seventh with 93 strikeouts in 136.2 innings pitched.

Ramirez, the GNAC Pitcher of the Year, finished third in the GNAC with a 2.17 ERA and led the conference with 18 wins, a .205 opponent batting average and 174 strikeouts in 180.2 innings to help lead the Vikings back to the GNAC Championships. She finished tied for second in the conference with 31 appearances and was third with 26 complete games and 21 games started.

Duclos finished the season ranked second in the GNAC with a .409 batting average. She led the conference with 65 hits and 46 runs scored and was fourth with a .453 on-base percentage. Duclos set the GNAC single-season record with 43 steals in 47 total attempts.