Softball All-Conference Teams Released
Tufts' Jo Clair Named Player of
the Year
HADLEY, Mass. – Tufts senior catcher
Jo Clair (Glastonbury, Conn.) has been selected as
the NESCAC Player of the Year as voted upon by the conference
coaches. In the midst of a record-setting season, Clair helped lead
Tufts to its third consecutive league title and a 37-3 overall
record. Clair is the tenth Jumbo player to be named Player of the
Year, while also becoming the fourth Tufts player to earn Player of
the Year and Rookie of the Year recognition during her career.
Clair wraps up her illustrious career as a four-time All-NESCAC
First Team selection after producing staggering offensive numbers
this season. She led the league in numerous offensive categories,
including on-base percentage (.531), slugging percentage (1.016),
home runs (18), RBI (57) and runs scored (48). Clair also finished
second in the NESCAC with a .468 batting average, while recording
18 walks and just six strikeouts. She has established herself as
argubly the best hitter in Tufts history, as she holds the
program’s all-time records in home runs (61), RBI (207), runs
scored (167) and total bases (470). Clair also boasts a .423 career
batting average and a .861 career slugging percentage.
Clair is one of four Tufts players to make the First Team along
with the Defensive Player of the Year. Junior Allyson
Fournier (South Windsor, Conn.) lands on her third First
Team, while collecting her third Pitcher of the Year award. She
joins former Williams hurler Clara Hard, who
received the honor in 2004, 2005 and 2006, as the only pitchers in
league history to be named Pitcher of the Year three times.
Fournier continued to be the conference’s most dominant
pitcher in the circle this season, as she posted an unblemished
19-0 record to go along with a conference-best 0.47 ERA and 232
strikeouts, while holding opponents to a .102 batting
average.
Joining Clair and Fournier are first-team All-NESCAC selections
senior pitcher Lauren Giglio (Niskayuna, N.Y.) and
first-year infielder Cassie Ruscz (Wolcott,
Conn.). Giglio ranked second in the league with a 1.29 ERA en route
to a 14-1 record in the circle. She also struck out 130 batters
over the course of 103.0 innings pitched. Ruscz provided an
immediate contribution to the Jumbo lineup this season, as she
ranked second among conference players in RBI (47) and home runs
(10), fourth in slugging percentage (.661) and ninth in batting
average (.378) and on-base percentage (.448).
NESCAC runner-up Williams landed two players on the All-NESCAC
First Team. Senior Ali Graebner (Short Hills,
N.J.) moved up to the first team after being named the second team
in 2012. The centerfielder was fourth in the league in runs scored
(32), sixth in batting average (.417), ninth in hits (45) and RBI
(27) and tenth in slugging percentage (.528). Her contributions
extend to the outfield as she has registered 13 assists so far this
season. Pitcher Emma Harrington (Columbus, Ohio)
makes her first appearance on the all-conference squad. The junior
posted a 2.38 ERA over 111.2 innings, while striking out 72 batters
en route to a 12-7 record.
A trio of veterans from three different teams repeated as
all-conference selections. Middlebury senior pitcher
Elizabeth Morris (Kenilworth, Ill.) has been
recognized on the First Team for the third consecutive year while
earning Second Team honors during her first year. Her earned run
average of 1.40 is third-best in the NESCAC. She struck out 95
hitters this season, while only walking 13 over the course of 85
innings as she registered an 8-5 record. Senior Kaitlin
Silkowitz (Scarsdale, N.Y) of Amherst earned her second
straight first team nod this year. The outfielder led the
conference with 17 stolen bases in addition to posting the
second-best on-base percentage in the conference at .492, the
third-best batting average at .451 and ranking fourth with 51 hits.
Trinity senior Abigail Ostrom (Carlisle, Mass.)
garnered First Team accolades for the first time in her career
after being named to the Second Team in 2011 and 2013. The catcher
tallied 32 RBI and a .739 slugging percentage, which were the
third-highest totals among all NESCAC players. She also ranked
third in the league with a .381 batting average.
Rounding out the team are first-time honorees Bowdoin junior
Adriane Krul (Ashburnham, Mass.) and Wesleyan
first-year Abby Rutt (Scarborough, Maine). Krul,
an infielder, ranks in the conference’s top ten in RBI (26)
and runs (28), while posting a .352 batting average. Rutt made a
splash in her debut season as she tied the single-season Cardinal
home run record with seven. She is among the top hitters in the
NESCAC with the second-best slugging percentage (.772), tied for
the fourth-most RBI (31) and the fifth-highest batting average
(.426). As a result of her efforts, Rutt has also been lauded as
the NESCAC Rookie of the Year. She is the second consecutive
Wesleyan player to receive the award after Su
Pardo earned the accolade last season.
Tufts sophomore shortstop Christina Raso
(Burlington, Mass.) was recognized as the NESCAC Defensive Player
of the Year after registering 53 assists and 42 put outs. Raso
anchors an infield for the Jumbos, who as a team led the conference
with a .967 fielding percentage. She is the third Tufts player to
receive the award, joining Laura Chapman (2009)
and Casey Sullivan (2010).
For the third consecutive season, Tufts head coach Cheryl
Milligan was chosen by her peers as the NESCAC Coach of
the Year. It is the seventh time Milligan has won the award and
marks the first time any softball coach has garnered the accolade
three straight years. Milligan, a four-year starter at shortstop
for the Jumbos and 1995 graduate, is in the middle of her 21st
season with the Tufts softball program. After finishing her playing
career, she became an assistant with the Jumbos before taking over
head coaching duties in 2003. Milligan led Tufts to its ninth
NESCAC crown this past weekend and third in a row.
Softball All Conference Teams
| First Team
All-NESCAC |
|
Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown |
| C |
Jo Clair
|
Tufts
|
Sr. |
Glastonbury, Conn.
|
| P |
Allyson Fournier
|
Tufts
|
Jr. |
South Windsor, Conn.
|
| OF |
Ali Graebner |
Williams |
Sr. |
Short Hills, N.J. |
| P |
Lauren Giglio |
Tufts |
Sr. |
Niskayuna, N.Y. |
| P |
Emma Harrington |
Williams |
Jr. |
Columbus, Ohio |
| IF |
Adriane Krul |
Bowdoin |
Jr. |
Ashburnham, Mass. |
| P |
Elizabeth Morris |
Middlebury |
Sr. |
Kenilworth, Ill. |
| C/IF |
Abigail Ostrom |
Trinity |
Sr. |
Carlisle, Mass. |
| 1B/3B |
Cassie Ruscz |
Tufts |
Fy. |
Wolcott, Conn. |
| C/SS |
Abby Rutt |
Wesleyan |
Fy. |
Scarborough, Maine |
| OF |
Kaitlin Silkowitz |
Amherst |
Sr. |
Scarsdale, N.Y. |
| |
|
|
|
|
| Second Team
All-NESCAC |
|
Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown |
| C/IF |
Kelsey Ayers |
Amherst |
Jr. |
Los Altos, Calif. |
| P |
Melissa DellaTorre
|
Bowdoin |
Sr. |
Scarborough, Maine
|
| 3B |
Jill Gately |
Wesleyan |
Jr. |
Rehoboth, Mass. |
| P/OF |
Emily Griffin |
Bowdoin |
Fy. |
Tucson, Ariz. |
| OF |
Sara Hedtler |
Tufts |
Sr. |
Wrentham, Mass. |
| P |
Hannah King |
Trinity |
So. |
Kennebunk, Maine |
| OF |
Donna Leet |
Amherst |
Jr. |
Seattle, Wash. |
| IF |
Gracie Marshall |
Tufts |
Jr. |
Palo Alto, Calif. |
| UT |
Elizabeth McQuaid |
Trinity |
So. |
Lowell, Mass. |
| SS |
Alison Michalik |
Williams |
Fy. |
Naperville, Ill. |
| C |
Sam Miller |
Hamilton |
Sr. |
Willcox, Ariz. |
|
|
