May 27, 2008
NORMAL, Ill. -
After a second-place finish in the regular season and multiple players earning both conference and national recognition in the postseason, the Illinois State softball team announced its 2008 regular-season awards Tuesday. The Redbirds (28-20 overall, 17-7 Missouri Valley Conference) also released their 2008-09 captains' council, which will be comprised of a quintet of current players.
Junior pitcher/first baseman Amber Smith earned the team's highest honor, as she was named Most Valuable Player for the 2008 Redbirds.
Smith took over the team's No. 1 pitching duties this season, where she compiled a team-best 14-9 record with a 2.10 ERA. The right-hander from Fairfield, Calif., struck out 108 batters in 157.0 innings pitched. Smith was equally effective at the plate for the Redbirds, and batted at a .349 clip, while she rapped out 44 hits, scored 20 runs and belted eight home runs. She was also a first-team All-MVC member and a National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division I All-Great Lakes Region Team member.
"Amber was a very good choice for our team MVP award," said Illinois State head coach Melinda Fischer. "We asked a lot of Amber this year in having her take over our No. 1 pitching duties, and I thought she really improved as the season went on. Amber provided a lot of offense for us this year, as well as a lot of leadership for the team in the circle."
For her ability to lead the team, both on-and-off the field, as well as her courageous comeback from a dislocated left shoulder she suffered April 16 at Illinois, senior second baseman Tiffany Prager earned the team's Redbird Award. The honor was voted on by ISU's coaching staff.
Prager earned her honor after she batted a team-second-best .350 at the plate, which was 57 points higher than her career average of .293 entering the season. The Bloomington, Ill., native led ISU in doubles (9), was second in runs scored (27), and was third on the team in both on-base percentage (.422) and hits (42). Prager capped off her career season for Illinois State with a selection to the All-MVC First Team, while she also earned recognition to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District V Softball First Team, the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete First Team, and was a recipient of The Valley's Good Neighbor Award.
Prager was also named the team's best defensive player.
"Tiffany was a great leader for our team, both on-and-off the field," said Fischer. "Academically, she was very sound, and in terms of her leadership qualities on the field, she was huge for us this year. I was very impressed by the manner in which she battled back from her injury and returned to the field to lead our team in the final weeks of the season."
Recording team-highs in seven different offensive categories, sophomore third baseman Kara Nelson was named ISU's Best Offensive Player. The Moline, Ill., native became just the second Redbird in program history to record multiple seasons of a .400-or-better batting average at the plate, as she batted at a .401 clip, which came on the heels of her .415 batting average in 2007.
Displaying an offensive prowess that is rarely seen in a first-year collegiate softball player, freshman Abby Olson earned ISU's Rookie of the Year Award. Olson hit .272 on the season with 25 hits, seven home runs and a .543 slugging percentage, which ranked third on the team. Olson cemented her place in the Illinois State record books May 3 at Northern Iowa, as she set an Illinois State single-game RBI record with seven runs driven in on three home runs.
Rounding out ISU's individual award-winners was senior right fielder Andrea Shifflet, who received the team's Most Improved Player honor. Shifflet delivered a solid defensive presence for Illinois State in right field, where she committed just three errors in 53 chances. She also hit .200 on the season, which included her first-career home run - a two-run shot - in a 5-1 victory over Miami [Ohio] Feb. 23.
Junior Jessie Buker and sophomore Michelle Henderson, along with Smith, Nelson and Olson, were named to the 2008-09 Illinois State Captains' Council. The quintet, which has a combined 11 years of collegiate softball experience, will lead the Redbirds, both on-and-off the field, next season.
"The captain's council is something that we started last year (2008), and although we had some ups-and-downs with it this year, we decided to stick with it for next season," said Fischer. "These five individuals were chosen by their returning teammates to be the team's leaders next season."
