Six Ferris State Softball Players Claim All-GLIAC Accolades For 2016 Campaign
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Big Rapids, Mich. - A total of six Ferris State University softball players received All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) accolades as the league announced its postseason award recipients on Friday (April 29) in conjunction with the conference tournament in Findlay, Ohio.
The Bulldogs had two first-team All-GLIAC honorees in outfielder Alexx Astorga (Gilbert, Ariz.) and third baseman Bailey Darwin (Chelsea). In addition, senior pitcher Stacy Thompson (Kalamazoo/Mattawan) and outfielder Emily Smith (Rochester Hills/Rochester) claimed All-GLIAC Second Team kudos while senior pitcher Megan Vanderwal (Muskegon) and senior second baseman Michelle Tononi (Clinton Township/L'Anse Creuse) received honorable mention laurels.
The six Bulldog honorees have helped FSU to a major turnaround this season as FSU posted a 34-16 regular-season mark to finish tied for third overall in the GLIAC. The 34 wins in regular-season play represented an 18-game improvement over a year ago.
Ferris State, which earned a split in day one action at the league tourney on Friday, has presently tied for the fourth-most single season wins in school history this year with 35 to date.
This year, Astorga has hit an impressive .379 to date in her first campaign with the Bulldogs and tallied 58 hits to go with 37 RBI's in 50 games. She's also recorded nine doubles, two triples and four home runs while notching six stolen bases and 30 walks.
Meanwhile, Darwin, has led the squad with a .401 hitting figure along with a team-best 63 hits and 39 RBI's in 49 appearances. The three-year letterwinner has produced 10 doubles, six homers and a triple while also notching a .592 slugging percentage with 157 total at-bats.
This season, Smith has played in 44 contests and produced 36 hits with 22 runs scored and 15 RBI's in 103 plate appearances. She's also hit .350 overall with three doubles and a triple while recording a team-best 16 stolen bases.
A four-year letterwinner, Thompson has ranked among the league's top pitchers this campaign and been FSU's ace with a 14-7 overall record along with a save. She's tallied 13 complete-game efforts and thrown 131 innings of action with a 2.08 earned run average. Thompson has also recorded 55 strikeouts in her 25 games.
A senior, Tononi has batted a team-leading 171 times while playing all 52 games in her final season. She's notched 49 hits and scored 30 runs while belting eight doubles, two triples and two homers. Tononi has also drove in 25 runs and drew 12 walks to date.
Finally, Vanderwal has throw in 20 outings this year with a 6-2 overall record. She's also registered a save and has made 11 starts. Her 1.78 earned run average ranks among the league leaders and she's also struck out 37 batters with two complete game performances.
Ferris State kept its season alive on Friday as the Bulldogs opened the 2016 GLIAC Tournament with a 1-1 mark to advance to day two action at the Marathon Diamonds complex in Findlay, Ohio. The fourth-seeded Bulldogs suffered a heart-breaking 6-5 loss to fifth-seeded Ashland in morning action, but bounced back in the consolation bracket of the double-elimination tournament to beat eighth-seeded Tiffin by a 2-0 count.
With the win over the Dragons, Ferris State continues play in the consolation portion of the bracket against either third-seeded Saginaw Valley State or sixth-seeded Findlay on Saturday (April 30) morning. The game time has been moved up to 8 a.m. (ET) with the Bulldogs needing three wins to reach Sunday's championship game.