FOREST, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Softball Team has seen three of its players named to the All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference Teams, ODAC officials announced Friday. The teams are voted on by the league’s 11 head coaches.
Freshman centerfielder Leah Elswick (Raven, Va.) was selected to the All-ODAC First Team while freshman third baseman Caley Hodge (Elizabethton, Tenn.) and freshman right fielder Danielle Loving (Elizabethton, Tenn.) were tabbed as third-team all-conference.
Elswick led the squad in batting average (.398), doubles (11), hits (45) and walks (12). She also posted a team-best .465 on-base percentage and slugged .637, which was second for the Wasps. The rookie of the year candidate started the season off with a 10-game hitting streak and notched 13 multi-hit games on the season. Elswick played in all 38 games for the Wasps this season, and put together a four-for-four outing with two doubles in game two at Bridgewater. It is the first time since the 2013 season - and only the second time since 2005 - that a Wasp has been named to the all-league first team.
Hodge posted a .375 batting average and led the ODAC in home runs (11), while finishing second in the league in RBI (38) and slugging percentage (.733). She also finished the year with a team-high 32 runs, 120 at bats, 45 hits, eight doubles, 88 total bases, 10 walks and six stolen bases. The Elizabethton High School graduate had 13 multi-hit, 10 multi-RBI and seven multi-run games in her first year as a Wasp. She was named ODAC Player of the Week for the week ending March 15.
Loving hit .366, which was third on the team with 30 hits in 82 at bats and registered 21 runs, five doubles, a triple, three home runs and 18 RBI. She also drew nine walks and stole six bases and posted a .435 on-base percentage and a slugging average of .561. Loving posted a nine-game hitting streak - batting a blistering .521 – including a four-for-four game with two home runs, six RBI and two runs scored against Ferrum. She had eight multi-hit and six multi-run contest on the season.
Emory & Henry finished the season with a 26-12 record with a 10-10 mark in ODAC play, its third-most wins in a single season. The Wasps achieved 20 wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2003-04 and won the most conference games since 2007. With its final win of the season, E&H reached a program milestone, marking 300 victories.
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2015 All-ODAC Softball Teams
ODAC Player of the Year: Courtney Bogan, Jr., OF, Virginia Wesleyan | |||
ODAC Pitcher of the Year: Kristina Karagiorgis, Sr., Virginia Wesleyan | |||
ODAC Coach of the Year: Brandon Elliott, Virginia Wesleyan | |||
ODAC Rookie of the Year: Nelda Bagley, Fr., P, Randolph-Macon | |||
ODAC/Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete: Laura Hall, Jr., OF, Guilford | |||
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ALL-ODAC FIRST TEAM | |||
Kelly Higbie | P | Sr. | Roanoke |
Kristina Karagiorgis | P | Sr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Madison Gilman | C | Jr. | Randolph-Macon |
Cassetty Howerin | 1B | Fr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Caroline Burnette | 2B | So. | Guilford |
Kayla St. John | 3B | So. | Lynchburg |
Sharese Jarvis | SS | Sr. | Randolph-Macon |
Aislinn Lucas | OF | Jr. | Eastern Mennonite |
Leah Elswick | OF | Fr. | Emory & Henry |
Courtney Bogan | OF | Jr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Lisa Mitro | DP | Sr. | Shenandoah |
Danielle Powell | UT | Jr. | Lynchburg |
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ALL-ODAC SECOND TEAM | |||
Nelda Bagley | P | Fr. | Randolph-Macon |
Mary Shipp | P | Jr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Taylor Galvin | C | Jr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Rachel Howard | 1B | Sr. | Guilford |
Kayla Malkos | 2B | Jr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Kayla Dost | 3B | Jr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Taylor Boyd | SS | So. | Guilford |
Jessi Hall | OF | Sr. | Lynchburg |
Amber Ingram | OF | Sr. | Lynchburg |
Samatha Pearce | OF | Fr. | Virginia Wesleyan |
Lauren Seale | DP | Fr. | Eastern Mennonite |
Amanda Sopko | UT | Sr. | Randolph-Macon |
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ALL-ODAC THIRD TEAM | |||
Conner English | P | Fr. | Lynchburg |
Hope Johnson | P | Sr. | Lynchburg |
Olivia Donohue | C | Sr. | Lynchburg |
Hunter Glavé | 1B | So. | Randolph |
Leslie Bourgeois | 2B | Fr. | Lynchburg |
Caley Hodge | 3B | Fr. | Emory & Henry |
Haley Brickles | SS | Fr. | Randolph |
Danielle Loving | OF | Fr. | Emory & Henry |
Sierra Ford | OF | Jr. | Randolph-Macon |
Katie Smith | OF | Fr. | Roanoke |
Brianna Cox | DP | Jr. | Bridgewater |
Liz Bailey | UT | So. | Virginia Wesleyan |