Horizon League Softball Award Winners Announced

INDIANAPOLIS -- Cleveland State senior first baseman Dara Toman was named the Horizon League Softball Player of the Year, marking the third time in four years a Cleveland State player has collected the award. League co-champion UIC placed five players on the All-League First Team, in voting of the League’s coaches.

Among those was League Pitcher of the Year Devin Miller, who paced the Horizon League with a 22-14 record in 43 appearances. Miller recorded 187 strikeouts in a conference-high 241.2 innings pitched.

CSU’s Erica McNew captured Newcomer of the Year accolades after nearly recording the triple crown in the Horizon League. McNew paced the conference with 18 home runs and a .414 batting average, while her 39 runs batted in were four shy of the League lead.

Leading UIC to its first share of the conference regular season title since 2009, Michelle Venturella was voted the Horizon League Coach of the Year. The honor was the second Venturella in five seasons, as she also took home the award in 2009.

With 14 homeruns this season, Toman rewrote the Horizon League record books, entering the conference tournament with a record 59 long balls, besting the old mark of 52. Toman’s 147 RBIs rank seventh in conference history.

UIC, which shared regular-season champion honors with Loyola after recording a 16-5 League record, placed five players on the All-League First Team, with Natalie Hernandez, Kara Komp, Melissa Preish and Laura Swan joining Miller on the squad.

Loyola placed three players on the first team, with Ramblers outfielder Brooke Andresen becoming just the third player in Horizon League history to earn a first team nod in each of her four years. Andresen was joined by teammates Lauren Moore and Brittany Gardner.

Cleveland State’s Toman and McNew each earned first team accolades, while Sara Cupp became the first Detroit player on the team since 2009. Joylyn Ichiyama returned to the first team for the second consecutive season.

UIC will host the Horizon League Softball Championship, which begins on Wednesday, May 8. The Horizon League Network will bring fans the action across all four days, culminating with the League championship game on May 11.  

2013 Softball Awards
Player of the Year
     Dara Toman, Cleveland State         
Newcomer of the Year
     Erica McNew, Cleveland State        
Pitcher of the Year
     Devin Miller, UIC
Coach of the Year
     Michelle Venturella, UIC  

All-League First Team
    Dara Toman, Cleveland State
    Natalie Hernandez, UIC
    Erica McNew, Cleveland State
    Lauren Moore, Loyola
    Joylyn Ichiyama, Valparaiso
    Kara Komp, UIC
    Sara Cupp, Detroit|
    Brooke Andresen, Loyola
    Melissa Preish, UIC
    Laura Swan, UIC (Designated Player)
    Devin Miller, UIC (Pitcher)
    Brittany Gardner, Loyola (Pitcher)

Second Team
    Marissa Michalkiewicz, Green Bay
    Coryn Schmit, UIC
    Samantha Snodgrass, Youngstown State
    Jessica Hrncar, Green Bay
    Janelle Bouchard, Valparaiso
    Cynthia Woodward, Cleveland State
    Brittany Duncan, Valparaiso
    Kaitlyn Ranieri, Valparaiso
    Brie Pasquale, Loyola
    Vicky Rumph, Youngstown State
    Kaitlyn Kite, Wright State (DP)
    Taylor Weissenhofer, Valparaiso (P)
    Krystian DeWitt, Wright State (P)
    Casey Crozier, Youngstown State (P)

All-Newcomer Team
     Erica McNew, Cleveland State
    Laura Swan, UIC
    Brie Pasquale, Loyola
    Taylor Weissenhofer, Valparaiso
    Marissa Michalkiewicz, Green Bay
    Susan Knight, Cleveland State
    Janelle Bouchard, Valparaiso
    Cynthia Woodward, Cleveland State
    Kayla Kostich, Detroit