Michigan Places Six on All-Great Lakes Region First Team
5/20/2010 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 20, 2010
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Six members of the No. 2-ranked University of Michigan softball team earned selection to the Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-Great Lakes Region first team today (Thursday, May 20) by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. U-M has boasted at least four first-team representatives in each of the last eight seasons.
Michigan was the only team to place all six of its nominees on the first team. The Wolverines accounted for half of the make-up of the Great Lakes Region first team. A total of 256 players from 116 different institutions comprise the 2010 regional teams, featuring first and second teams for all 10 NFCA regions.
Both Wolverine pitchers -- senior LHP Nikki Nemitz (St. Clair Shores, Mich./Regina HS) and junior RHP Jordan Taylor (Valencia, Calif./Valencia HS) -- earned first team honors for the third straight season, while senior rightfielder Angela Findlay (Lockport, Ill./East HS) nabbed her fourth straight all-region honor and third on the first team. Junior first baseman Dorian Shaw (Burke, Va./Robinson SS), senior third baseman Maggie Viefhaus (Eureka, Mo./Eureka HS) and sophomore leftfielder Bree Evans (Bloomington, Calif./Rialto HS) rounded out Michigan's representatives with their first all-region selection.
Selected as a utility player, Nemitz is enjoying a career season from the plate, registering a .355 average with 17 extra-base hits -- eight homers -- and 41 runs batted in en route to Big Ten Co-Player of the Year accolades. Already a two-time NFCA All-American as a pitcher, Nemitz owns a 20-3 record with a 1.67 earned-run average and 169 strikeouts. Nemitz is the only pitcher in Wolverine program history to earn four straight 20-win seasons, and with a career record of 91-20, she ranks third among Michigan's all-time winningest pitchers.
The 2010 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year, Taylor has paced the Wolverine team this season with a 24-3 record, 1.43 ERA, 278 strikeouts and seven complete-game shutouts. The Wolverine hurler owns a pair of perfect games and three no-hitters on the season, upping her career total to six -- a U-M school record. She boasts 14 double-digit strikeout performances on the season, including three in her last four starts, and, with 842 strikeouts in her career, already ranks third among Michigan's all-time leaders in the category.
Findlay, a four-time All-Big Ten first team selection, has been a consistent presence in U-M' lineup all season, ranking among the Wolverines' leading hitters with a .351 batting average, 52 runs scored and 50 RBI. A 2007 NFCA All-America third team selection, Findlay has hit .337 or better in each of her collegiate seasons and boasts a stellar career .431 on-base percentage.
Headlining the Wolverines' contingent of power hitters, Shaw boasts a team-leading 18 home runs with 55 RBI and a .820 slugging percentage. An All-Big Ten second team selection, Shaw owns a career-best .359 average -- a 74-point improvement over her previous best.
The Wolverines' leading hitter for much of the 2010 season, Viefhaus has boasted a career year in her final collegiate season with highs in nearly every offensive categories. She carries a team-best .384 average with 60 runs scored, 17 home runs and 53 RBI. Named the Big Ten Player Co-Player of the Year, Viefhaus led the conference with a .478 average in Big Ten play.
Evans has started every game this season from the leadoff spot, registering a career-high .362 average with seven doubles, four triples and 19 RBI. She has registered at least one hit in 41 games this season and leads the Wolverines with 21 multi-hit performances.
The all-region teams were chosen by NFCA member coaches from each region, and all the honorees will now be eligible for selection to the Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-America first, second or third teams. The NFCA Division I All-American teams will be announced at 4 p.m. CDT on Wednesday, June 2.
The Wolverines will host an NCAA Regional for the ninth consecutive year, welcoming Notre Dame, Illinois State and Wright State to the Wilpon Softball Complex this weekend (Fri-Sun., May 21-23). Michigan opens play against Wright State at 7 p.m. on Friday evening.
Great Lakes Region
FIRST TEAM
P -- Jordan Taylor, Michigan
P -- Jody Valdivia, Notre Dame
C -- Melissa Roth, Louisville
1B -- Dorian Shaw, Michigan
2B -- Dani Miller, Notre Dame
3B -- Maggie Viefhaus, Michigan
SS -- Katie Fluery, Notre Dame
UT/P -- Nikki Nemitz, Michigan
UT/DP -- Michelle Batts, Northwestern
OF -- Bree Evans, Michigan
OF -- Angela Findlay, Michigan
OF -- Sadie Pitzenberger, Notre Dame
SECOND TEAM
P -- Bree Brown, DePaul
P -- Sarah Jackson, Iona
P -- Elizabeth Milian, Ball State
C -- Kacee Cox, St. John's
1B -- Christine Lux, Notre Dame
2B -- Teresa Healy, Niagara
3B -- Chelsea Bemis, Louisville
3B -- Jessie Ware, Ball State
SS -- Emily Allard, Northwestern
UT/P -- Becca Heteniak, DePaul
UT/DP -- Molly Spence, Wisconsin
OF -- Lisaira Daniels, Syracuse
OF -- Veronica Grant, Syracuse
OF -- Alex Morocco, DePaul
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
