OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – Three WAC softball players –
Morgan Melloh of Fresno State,
Amberly Waits of Louisiana Tech and
Katie Holverson of Nevada – have been named to the watch list for the ninth annual USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year Award.
Melloh, who appears on the list for the second-straight year, was the 2008 WAC Freshman and Pitcher of the Year and a second team All-American. The 2009 WAC Tournament MVP, Melloh became the fourth pitcher in NCAA history to record back-to-back 400 strikeout seasons in her freshman and sophomore campaigns.
Waits earned numerous accolades following her junior campaign after setting program records for single season batting average (.488), hits (81), home runs (17), RBI (62), total bases (155), on-base percentage (.538) and slugging percentage (.934). In addition to being LA Tech’s first-ever WAC Player of the Year, Waits was named the state Hitter of the Year by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association, first team all-WAC, first team all-state and to the All-Wst Region team.
Holverson, the 2009 WAC Pitcher of the Year, is 61-31 with a 2.23 ERA in her career at Nevada. Last year, she went 28-11 with a 1.70 earned-run average in leading the Wolf Pack to its second-straight WAC title and NCAA Tournament appearance.
The award, which is considered the most prestigious honor in Division I women's collegiate softball, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by collegiate softball players across the country. Past winners of this award include UCLA's Stacey Nuveman, Florida State's Jessica Van der Linden, three-time winner Texas pitcher Cat Osterman, Tennessee's
Monica Abbott, Virginia Tech's Angela Tincher and 2009 winner Washington pitcher/hitter Danielle Lawrie.
The 2010 Watch List is comprised of 50 players representing 35
schools and 14 different conferences. The list includes 27 seniors, 17 juniors and six sophomores.
The ASA will announce the 25 finalists on April 7. A player does not have to appear on this initial watch list to be considered as a top 25 finalist. However, once the top 25 finalists are named the winner of the award will come from that list. Freshmen qualify for the top 25 list once they have competed at the collegiate level.
To view the complete Watch List, click
here.