May 30, 2007
NORMAL, Ill. -
Illinois State's Kara Nelson has done it again. The first-year softball phenom became the first freshman to ever win the Missouri Valley Conference's Player of the Year Award and on Wednesday, Nelson became the highest recognized Redbird by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association, when she was named to the 2007 Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I All-America Second Team.
"I kind of knew at the beginning of the season (that I had a special player)," head coach Melinda Fischer said. "In the fall season, we saw a lot of promise with Kara offensively. I thought she did a good job during the winter months gaining some power by working with Tina (Kramos) and she also gained some strength by lifting in the weight room. She's a hard worker, who wanted to hit every day and doesn't like to take days off."
That kind of diligence paid off for Nelson, as she became the sixth player in Illinois State history named to an NFCA All-America Team and the first selected above the third team.
"Kara has so many dimensions to her game," Fischer added. "Probably a part of her game that she didn't use a lot was bunting to get on, but I think that is something she can definitely pick up over the summer. She was so effective at slapping and so effective at hitting, that I'm not even sure if she really needed it."
Nelson, the Redbirds' starting third baseman, sparked the ISU lineup from the No. 1 spot all season. The lefty slap hitter ended the 2007 season batting at a .415 clip, collecting a team-high 90 hits in 217 at bats, including 14 doubles, four triples and three home runs. Nelson scored 59 runs and drove in 21, while boasting a slugging percentage of .558 and an on-base percentage of .448.
A native of Moline, Ill., Nelson led the conference in batting average, runs scored and hits. In the Redbirds' 18 games against NCAA Tournament participants, Nelson batted .500 (29-for-58) with a .655 slugging percentage. Her storied season started immediately, as Nelson collected hits in each of her first eight collegiate games.
"She just clicked. She started getting on, making good contact and beating out hits," Fischer said. "For us to have that kind of speed at the start of our line-up was really huge with the rest of the players that we had."
Even personal adversity didn't slow Nelson down, shown by her 6-for-7 effort at Creighton despite the death of her grandfather.
"When we played at Creighton, in the first two games she batted .857, and on Sunday she went to her grandfather's visitation," Fischer said. "She just went up there and just did what she was capable of doing and never really thought about anything else."
Nelson, who was the Valley's only representation on the NFCA's three all-America teams, helped guide the Redbirds to a 44-17-1 overall record, which included an at-large berth into the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
