Sophomore third baseman
Becky McMurtry has been named a third-team All-American by the National Fastpitch Coaches Assocation. McMurtry joins former Redbirds Heather Stella (1998 and 1999), Priscilla Welch (1997) and Jodi Burch (1995) as the only Illinois State players to earn NFCA All-American honors.
Its really a great honor, Illinois State head coach
Melinda Fischer said. Especially with Becky being just a sophomore, it is quite an accomplishment.
A first-team all-Missouri Valley Conference selection and the 2001 Valley Tournament MVP, McMurtry helped lead the Redbirds to a 37-18 overall record, a 19-3 conference record, a Valley regular-season championship and consecutive Valley tournament titles and NCAA Regional appearances.
The second leading hitter on the squad, McMurtry batted .354 and the led Illinois State in seven offensive categories including runs (36), hits (57), doubles (17), slugging percentage (.571) and on base percentage (.453). She also tied for team-high honors with six home runs and ranked third on the squad with 29 RBI.
She made some major improvement from her freshman season, Fischer said. I think she made the biggest improvement defensively this season and she played a huge role in the success of the team.
Against conference opponents she hit a team-high .397 with 19 runs scored, helping the Redbirds tie a conference record with 19 wins in Valley play.
She was valuable in all aspects of the game, Fischer added. She played solid defense at a tough position, drove in a lot of runs and got on base a lot also.
Advancing to NCAA play for the second straight year, Illinois State posted a 2-2 record in regional action, defeating both Western Illinois and South Carolina.
McMurtry was one of two Valley players to earn All-American honors. Senior pitcher Erin Stremsterfer from Southern Illinois also earned third-team honors.
