We have already posted our top 50 returning hitters and pitchers for 2017. Now we go class by class and look players who fell just short of those lists. They make up our players to watch segments. Next up: The Seniors.
Hitters
Taylor Glover
CSUN
Glover was named an NFCA Third Team All-American, becoming the first CSUN All-American since 2004. She batted .429 in 2016 which helped her earn NFCA First Team All-West Region honors, becoming the first Matador in over a decade to earn two career first Team All-Region honors.
Megan Geer
Tennessee
Geer is coming off an impressive season that saw her set career highs in batting average (.368), runs (61), hits (60), RBIs (55), walks (39), stolen bases (25), on-base percentage (.493) and slugging percentage (.638)
She also led the team with 61 runs, 26 stolen bases and 39 walks. To add to all of that she also hit 11 homer runs to move into sixth on the program’s career home runs list with 31.
Kylie Reed
California
Reed earned second team All-Pac-12 honors and a spot on the NFCA All-Pacific third team after leading Cal in batting average with a .403 average. Ended the regular season ranked No. 2 in the Pac-12 with a .458 average in conference games She posted a career-best 21-game hitting streak from Feb. 27 to April 16 as well.
Delaney Spaulding UCLA
UCLA
Spaulding, who was a member of the U.S. Women’s National Team for the first time in the summer of 2016. Is coming off a strong season where she was named an NFCA Second Team All-American, as well as NFCA All-Region and All-Pac-12 First Team honors. She led the Bruins with 17 home runs and 61 runs batted in, adding to a .341 batting average.
Juli Weber
South Florida
Weber was named to the NFCA Mideast All-Region First Team, American Athletic Conference Player of the Year and a unanimous first-team all-conference selection. She set career highs in runs (49), hits (78), RBI (39), average (.406), total bases (117) and slugging percentage (.609).
Pitchers
Nickie Blue
South Carolina
Blue made 51 appearances, which ties for second in Gamecock single-season history. While her 211 innings stood third in the Southeastern Conference for the year and 14th on SC’s season charts, while her 26 relief appearances also ranks second. Blue led the Gamecocks in strikeouts (129), strikeout-to-walk ratio (1.57) and walks and hits per innings pitched (WHIP) (1.23).
Rachel Knapp
Central Michigan
Knapp led the team in innings pitched (182 1/3), strikeouts (196), and earned run average (2.76). She has the ability to make hitters miss and will look to cap off what has been a good career.
Peyton Jordan
UNCW
Jordan earned Second-Team All-Colonial Athletic Association honors for the second straight season. She posted a 2.09 earned run average which was second best in the conference. On the season Jordan went 14-6 to become first UNCW pitcher with at least 14 wins since 2006. She will look to improve upon that in 2017.
Jordan Dixon
Marshall
Dixon set several school records in 2016. She won 23 games and became the first pitcher in team history to win 20 or more games three times. Dixon threw a no-hitter March 22 vs. Ohio and became Marshall’s all-time leader in wins with her 66th career victory and ended the season with 76. She is also Marshall’s all-time leader in career strikeouts (821) and the first pitcher in team history with three seasons of 200 or more strikeouts.
Ronnie Ladines
Kent State
Ladines was an All-MAC First Team selection in 2016 behind a solid 23-10 record. She also earned NFCA All-Region Honors. On the year she posted a 2.54 ERA to go along with 206 strikeouts to just 75 walks over 220.2 innings,
