SUBJECT: Five Wilmington University Softball Players Named All-CACC; League High Four on First Team
DATE: April 27, 2015
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NEW HAVEN, Conn. - - After finishing with one of the program’s most successful regular seasons this past week, the Wilmington University softball team was rewarded with five student-athletes being named All-Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, as announced by the conference office on Monday.
The Wildcats (31-14) earned the No. 3 seed for the upcoming CACC Tournament after finishing 19-7 in league play. The team boosts its best win percentage since the 2007 season (.688), landing four members as First Team All-CACC and one as Second Team All-CACC.
Seniors Chelsea Botsch and Kelsey Doherty, junior Cambria Ziemba, and freshman Danielle Bradley were named First Team All-CACC while sophomore Colby Wyatt earned Second Team All-CACC honors.
It is the first time earning All-CACC honors for all five Wildcats and two more than the team earned last year in the CACC Tournament Championship run.
Botsch (Smyrna, Del./Smyrna) led the CACC with 17 wins this year while finishing second with a 1.63 ERA and 155 strikeouts. In 29 appearances throughout the regular season, she tossed 137.1 innings, throwing 14 complete games and eight shutouts. She strikeouts out 7.90 batters per game while only giving up 17 walks this year. Hitters only hit .192 off of Botsch, fourth best in the CACC. She was named the CACC Pitcher of the Week twice throughout the year.
The senior had a stretch of 52.1 consecutive innings without allowing a run, spanning eight straight complete game shutouts. Botsch collected a career high 15 strikeouts against Georgian Court while adding 13 against Goldey-Beacom and 10 against Indiana (Pa.). She has wins against the No. 1 team in the East (Caldwell), then No. 2 (Adelphi), No. 3 (Southern New Hampshire), and No. 10 (Post).
Doherty (Harbeson, Del./Sussex Tech), a shortstop, led the Wildcats with a .383 batting average, 10th best in the CACC. She also had a team high 35 RBI, fourth best in the CACC while also stealing 13 bases on the year. She leads the CACC with 20 doubles and 94 total bases this year, adding four triples and four home runs. She’s third in slugging with a .667 percentage while ranking third in the CACC with 54 hits and fourth with 34 runs.
The senior tallied a season high five RBI in a 3-for-4 game against Assumption, totaling five three-hit games on the year. Doherty hit home runs against Cedarville, Assumption, Adelphi, and Bloomfield on the year while tallying two doubles in a game each against West Chester, Chestnut Hill, and USciences. She was named the CACC Player of the Week on March 16.
Ziemba (Wilmington, Del./St. Mark’s), a second baseman, leads the CACC with 37 runs scored while sitting in second with 55 hits. She has five doubles, three triples, and hit her first career home run this season. She’s third with 18 stolen bases while ranking 12th in the CACC with a .379 batting average. She has been named CACC Player of the Week twice this season.
The junior hit her lone home run of the year against Assumption, finishing 3-for-4 with three runs against the Greyhounds. Ziemba has tallied four three-hit games this year, two against No. 10 West Chester by going 6-for-9 in the doubleheader. She also had three hits in game two against No. 21 Caldwell.
Bradley (Delmar, Del./Delmar), an outfielder, came on strong late for the Wildcats, finishing her first regular season of collegiate softball with a .370 batting average. Of her 27 hits, she has two doubles, two triples, and a home run, bringing in 20 runners while scoring 18. She is fifth in the CACC with 14 stolen bases, only being caught once. Bradley is hitting .418 against CACC opponents, slugging .545 while bringing in 14 runners.
The freshman went a season best 3-for-3 in game two against Georgian Court. Bradley brought in a season high three RBI in three games at the end of the season, hitting her lone homer of the year at USciences. She also hit triples against Caldwell and Dowling in back-to-back doubleheaders.
Wyatt (Harrington, Del./Lake Forest) was named a Second Team All-CACC as a utility player, splitting her time in right field and at first base for the Wildcats. She hit .351 in the regular season, knocking in 22 RBI and scoring 13 more. She was sixth in the CACC with nine doubles, while hitting three home runs as well.
The sophomore hit three home runs in two at-bats in game one at Bloomfield, going 2-for-2 with three RBI. She also hit a home run against Philadelphia, batting 2-for-4 with three RBI. Wyatt also collected a season high three RBI against Southern New Hampshire, batting 3-for-4 for the game.
The four First Team All-CACC members led the CACC while their five total student-athletes on the All-CACC teams tied for second most among the league’s 14 teams.
Georgian Court’s Dara Schroeder was named the CACC Player of the Year while Post’s Samantha Esque was named the CACC Pitcher of the Year. Dominican’s Jillian Regan was named the CACC Rookie of the Year while Caldwell head coach Dean Johnson was voted as the CACC Coach of the Year by the league’s sports information directors. Philadelphia was voted as the 2015 CACC Team Sportsmanship Award winner.
The Wildcats will earn their award during the CACC Banquet on Wednesday night, hosted by Georgian Court University in Lakewood, N.J., before looking to defend their CACC Tournament Championship starting on Thursday morning.
AGATE:
2015 All-CACC Softball Teams
First Team:
C – Shannon Haukap, Dominican
1B – Ciera Clark, Felician
2B – Cambria Ziemba, Wilmington
3B – Kayla Kresley, Post
SS – Kelsey Doherty, Wilmington
OF – Dara Schroeder, Georgian Court
OF – Danielle Bradley, Wilmington
OF – Alyssa Paradiso, Georgian Court
OF – Amy Hickman, Caldwell
OF – Emma Haley, Philadelphia
P – Samantha Esque, Post
P – Chelsea Botsch, Wilmington
DP – Kirsten Wilson, Bloomfield
Util – Bailey Walters, Holy Family
Second Team:
C – Alyssa Calderon, Caldwell
1B – Kortney Craker, Caldwell
2B – Victoria Vickerman, Concordia
3B – Kristen Knorr, Caldwell
SS – Jillian Regan, Dominican
OF – Alyssa Schwed, Dominican
OF – Brielle Reighn. Caldwell
OF – Elontay Collins, Dominican
OF – Lauren Bueno, Bloomfield
OF – Barbie Barron, USciences
OF – Brianna Scotto, Holy Family
P – Amber Padilla, Caldwell
P – Jenna Maska, Dominican
DP – Marisa Monasseri, Caldwell
Util – Colby Wyatt, Wilmington
2015 CACC Softball Player of the Year: Dara Schroeder, Georgian Court
2015 CACC Softball Pitcher of the Year: Samantha Esque, Post
2015 CACC Softball Rookie of the Year: Jillian Regan, Dominican
2015 BSN Sports/CACC Coach of the Year: Dean Johnson, Caldwell
2015 CAC Softball Team Sportsmanship Award: Philadelphia