MILWAUKEE, Wis. (naccsports.org) --- The Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) has announced its all-conference teams and major award winners for the 2023 softball season.
Concordia University Wisconsin senior
Gina Followell (Romeoville, Ill.) was named NACC Pitcher of the Year for the third straight year, while Wisconsin Lutheran College junior infielder
Lexi Martin (Westfield, Ind.) repeated as NACC Position Player of the Year. Additionally, Benedictine University pitcher/infielder
Jasmine Lozano (Chicago, Ill.) was named NACC Freshman of the Year, and the the coaching staff from Concordia Wisconsin was recognized as the NACC Coaching Staff of the Year.
NACC Pitcher of the Year --- Gina Followell, sr., Concordia University Wisconsin
Followell has appeared in 25 of Concordia Wisconsin's 38 games through the opening round of the NACC Softball Tournament, posting a 22-0 mark and three saves with 203 strikeouts and an 0.67 earned-run average over 147 1/3 innings. She has allowed just 14 earned runs all season while throwing 19 complete games.
Followell leads all NACC pitchers in wins, complete games, ERA, hits allowed per seven innings, strikeout-to-walk ratio (10.15), and WHIP (0.59, leads NCAA Division III), and is engaged in a daily back-and-forth with MSOE's Kennedy Lehn for the league's top strikeout total this season. She also has seven shutouts this season, second only to Lehn's eight.
She has struck out 10 or more batters 13 times this season, including a NACC season-high 16 in a win over Wisconsin Lutheran on April 2.
Already the NACC's career leader in shutouts (34 through May 11), Followell also ranks second in league history in strikeouts (795 through May 11). She trails only Aurora's
Anna Snyder (816; 2007-10) on that list.
This is Followell's third NACC Pitcher of the Year honor. She was named North Division Pitcher of the Year in 2021 before winning the single leaguewide award last season. Followell was also the league's Freshman of the Year in 2019.
She is the third student-athlete to be named NACC Pitcher of the Year three times after Benedictine's
Brittany Adcox (2010-12) and Aurora's
Vanessa Hartzell (2014-16).
NACC Position Player of the Year --- Lexi Martin, jr., INF, Wisconsin Lutheran College
Martin started all 40 games for the Warriors this season, compiling a staggering slash line with a .528 batting average, a .630 on-base percentage, and an .849 slugging percentage. She led the NACC in all three categories, and finished the regular season tied with Concordia Wisconsin's Sydney Erdmann for the conference's top hit total. Martin's OBP also leads NCAA Division III and represents a new NACC single-season record.
Martin, who recorded at least one hit in 34 of 40 games this season, finished with 56 hits in 106 at-bats, 37 runs scored, 27 RBIs, 12 doubles, two triples, and six home runs. Martin also drew 27 walks and was hit by four pitches while striking out just eight times.
This is the third time a Wisconsin Lutheran student-athlete has been named NACC Position Player of the Year.
Brittney Blazich captured the honor as a freshman in 2014 before Martin's back-to-back honors.
Martin is also the third student-athlete to be named NACC Position Player of the Year twice after Aurora's
Dana Cebular (2007-08) and
Elaine Walker (2016, 2019).
NACC Freshman of the Year --- Jasmine Lozano, P/INF, Benedictine University
Lozano has started every game for the Eagles so far this season, posting a .414 batting average, a .479 on-base percentage, and a .484 slugging percentage with 53 hits in 128 at-bats. She has 18 RBIs, 34 runs scored, seven doubles, and a triple, while also drawing 15 walks. Once on the basepaths, Lozano is a threat to steal once on the basepaths, finding success on 12 of 15 stolen-base attempts.
At the plate, Lozano ranks in the top-10 in the NACC in batting average, hits, on-base percentage.
Lozano has also made 19 appearances in the circle, posting an 8-8 record, a 2.75 ERA and 38 strikeouts over 91 2/3 innings. She has 10 complete games, four shutouts, and 2-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Lozano is the fifth Benedictine student-athlete to be named NACC Freshman of the Year, and the first since Kailee Cable in 2013.
NACC Coaching Staff of the Year --- Concordia University Wisconsin (Steve Crook, head coach)
Concordia University Wisconsin, led by head coach
Steve Crook in his 24th season, forged a 34-3 mark overall during the regular season and finished a perfect 23-0 in league play. The Falcons became just the second team (Aurora, 2015) to finish an entire NACC slate with an unblemished mark.
CUW captured its fourth league title since 2019, adding to standalone titles in 2019 and 2022 and a NACC North Division title in 2021. No title was awarded in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Led by pitchers Gina Followell and Nicki Becker, the Falcons entered the NACC Tournament ranked in the top-five in NCAA Division III in WHIP (fourth, 0.83), ERA (fifth, 1.14), and strikeout-to-walk ratio (fifth, 6.11).
In addition to those categories, CUW led all NACC programs in fielding percentage (.971), scoring (6.43 runs per game) and shutouts (12), while ranking second in slugging percentage (.486) and doubles (67), and third in home runs (21), team on-base percentage (.385), total runs (238), and sacrifice flies (13).
Crook is assisted by
Patrick Steele,
Kaitlin Downey,
Kelsey Bollon, and
Jeff Hanick.
This is the fourth consecutive season (2019, 2021-23) that Crook or a Crook-led staff has been recognized by the league's head coaches.
All-Conference Team Annnouced
Eleven of the NACC's 13 institutions had at least one player named to the 25-member all-conference teams. Benedictine and Dominican each had a league-high four student-athletes recognized, followed by three apiece from Concordia Wisconsin and MSOE. All three of CUW's picks landed on the first team, while Benedictine and MSOE had two first-teamers apiece. The Eagles also ended up with two players on the second team, while Dominican had three. Aurora, Concordia Chicago, Marian, and Wisconsin Lutheran each had one first-team pick and one second-team pick, while Edgewood, Lakeland, and Rockford all had their lone all-conference pick named to the first team.
| 2023 NACC Softball All-Conference Team |
| NACC Position Player of the Year - Lexi Martin, Wisconsin Lutheran |
| NACC Pitcher of the Year - Gina Followell, Concordia Wisconsin |
| NACC Freshman of the Year - Jasmine Lozano, Benedictine |
| NACC Coaching Staff of the Year - Concordia Wisconsin (Steve Crook, head coach) |
|
|
| First Team |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Alexa Rayborn |
Aurora |
Sr. |
INF |
Brookfield, Wis. |
| Alexandra Loizon |
Benedictine |
Sr. |
P |
Channahon, Ill. |
| Jasmine Lozano |
Benedictine |
Fr. |
P/INF |
Chicago, Ill. |
| Becky Pieroni |
Concordia Chicago |
Sr. |
UT |
Montgomery, Ill. |
| Sydney Erdmann |
Concordia Wisconsin |
Sr. |
OF |
Geneva, Ill. |
| Gina Followell |
Concordia Wisconsin |
Sr. |
P |
Romeoville, Ill. |
| Claudia Utz |
Concordia Wisconsin |
Sr. |
C |
Lockport, Ill. |
| Delaney McRiley |
Dominican |
Jr. |
C/OF |
Temple City, Calif. |
| Olivia Hebert |
Edgewood |
So. |
C |
Middleton, Wis. |
| Skylar Hall |
Lakeland |
Jr. |
P/INF |
Negaunee, Mich. |
| Hope Matta |
Marian |
Fr. |
OF |
Valparaiso, Ind. |
| Jenna Trewyn |
MSOE |
Jr. |
C/INF |
Oak Creek, Wis. |
| Kennedy Lehn |
MSOE |
Sr. |
P |
Kewaskum, Wis. |
| Candace Kipp |
Rockford |
Sr. |
C |
Madison, Wis. |
| Lexi Martin |
Wisconsin Lutheran |
Jr. |
INF |
Westfield, Ind. |
| Second Team |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Kionna King |
Aurora |
Fr. |
INF/C |
Rio Rancho, N.M. |
| Ashley Fisher |
Benedictine |
Gr. |
INF/P |
Rensselear, Ind. |
| Taylor Skraba |
Benedictine |
Gr. |
OF |
Hickory Hills, Ill. |
| Arissa Santos |
Concordia Chicago |
Fr. |
INF |
Moreno Valley, Calif. |
| Makayla Barnes |
Dominican |
Jr. |
C/3B |
Rohnert Park, Calif. |
| Geneva Pollman |
Dominican |
Sr. |
P/OF |
Bartlett, Ill. |
| Emma Woodhouse |
Dominican |
So. |
P/OF |
Sacramento, Calif. |
| Katelyn Matenaer |
Marian |
Jr. |
INF |
West Bend, Wis. |
| Grace Salaja |
MSOE |
Sr. |
OF |
Hartland, Wis. |
| Ashley Corley |
Wisconsin Lutheran |
Jr. |
UT |
Plainfield, Ill. |
| Honorable Mention |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Izzy Torres |
Alverno |
Sr. |
P/INF |
Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Alex Thiel |
Aurora |
So. |
OF |
Glendale, Ariz. |
| Hailey Howard |
Concordia Chicago |
Sr. |
UT |
Machesney Park, Ill. |
| Nicki Becker |
Concordia Wisconsin |
Sr. |
P |
Brodhead, Wis. |
| Jessica Pozezinski |
Concordia Wisconsin |
So. |
SS |
Lake Villa, Ill. |
| Jordan August |
Lakeland |
So. |
C |
Schererville, Ind. |
| Faith Matta |
MSOE |
Jr. |
OF |
Valparaiso, Ind. |
| Allison Ardito |
St. Norbert |
Fr. |
INF |
Bartlett, Ill. |
| Christina Paleka |
St. Norbert |
Jr. |
OF |
Burlington, Wis. |