Quartet of MAAC Softball Student-Athletes Earn Academic All-District Honors
MAAC Sports
EDISON, N.J. – Four Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference student-athletes have been named to the Capital One Academic All-District I Softball Team, as announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Canisius College senior, Michelle DelPrince and the Manhattan trio of Elena Bowman, Amy Bright, and Mickayla Romero earned the honors.
To be eligible for Academic All-America consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 20,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
First-team Academic All-District honorees advance to the Capital One Academic All-America Team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America honorees will be selected later this month.
DelPrince, a team co-captain who was named All-MAAC First Team on Wednesday, had a career-year in 2015, as she hit .326 with 42 hits, four doubles, six triples and five home runs to go with 35 runs scored and 30 RBI. The MAAC’s leader in triples in 2015, she also led Canisius with 14 stolen bases and posted a slugging percentage of .566 to go with an on-base percentage of .410. One of her five homers in 2015 came April 12, when she smashed a walk-off grand slam to help lift the Golden Griffins to a 9-5 extra-inning win over MAAC rival Marist at home. The Lancaster, N.Y. native played in all 45 games for Canisius in right field, and she closed out her career in Blue and Gold tied for 13th in school history with 10 career triples.
The 2015 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Player of the Year and Manhattan College Co-Female Student-Athlete of the Year, Bowman ranks among the national leaders in batting average (.455), slugging percentage (.935) and on base percentage (.588). She also paces the Jaspers with 16 home runs, one shy of the single-season program record, 56 hits, 11 doubles, and 38 runs scored. Bowman, who has started every game behind the plate, is also tied for the team lead with 41 RBIs. A two-time First Team All-MAAC selection, she’s also twice been named to the MAAC All-Academic Team.
Bright was named to the All-MAAC First Team in 2015. She boasts a 15-9 record and 2.86 ERA in 31 appearances. Bright has also recorded three saves, and her 133 strikeouts are the second-most for a single-season in program history. In addition, she has posted five shutouts this season. Bright has earned a place on the MAAC All-Academic Team three times.
Romero has started 44 games at third base this season and is hitting .284. She’s tied for second on the team with 26 runs scored and fourth with 42 hits. Romero has gone deep four times this season, and her 23 RBIs are fifth-most on the squad. She drove in both runs in the Jaspers’ 2-1 victory over Canisius in the MAAC Tournament on Thursday afternoon. Romero is also a three-time MAAC All-Academic Team selection.