Courtesy of the ECAC
CENTERVILLE, Mass. – The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) announced its 2014 Division I Softball All-Star teams today, and Fordham University senior Elise Fortier (Coventry, R.I.), James Madison University sophomore Jailyn Ford (Hot Springs, Va.) and University of Pennsylvania freshman Leah Allen (Woodbine, Md.) were selected as the major award winners. Fortier was named the Player of the Year, while Ford earned the Pitcher of the Year distinction and Allen was selected as the Rookie of the Year. The voting was completed by the head coaches within the ECAC Division I Softball membership.
Fortier led the Rams in nearly every statistical offensive category this season, helping Fordham to an overall record of 36-20 and a berth in the NCAA tournament. She batted .389 with 20 home runs, a school-record 73 RBI and an .854 slugging percentage. Fortier collected 33 extra-base hits, registered a .495 on-base percentage and was a perfect 7-for-7 in stolen base attempts. At the NCAA Tallahassee Regional, she belted her 20th home run of the season, and 46th of her career, to set a new program record in just three seasons. Fortier is the only player in the nation to hit 20 home runs in each of the past two seasons. She was also named the ECAC Division I Metro/Upstate Player of the Week on April 29, selected to the NCAA Tallahassee All-Regional Team, the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) First Team All-Mid-Atlantic Region and the Atlantic-10 Conference Player of the Year.
Ford enjoyed a record-setting campaign for the Dukes in 2014, as she set or tied school benchmarks for wins, shutouts, saves, innings pitched and strikeouts. The southpaw went 24-7 with a 1.26 earned run average in 228.2 innings pitched. Ford made 41 appearances this season, tossing 21 complete games and fanning 233 batters. She also twirled nine shutouts and held opponents to a .200 batting average. Ford also contributed to the Dukes’ 45 wins this season at the plate. She hit .268 with a team-high nine home runs and 36 runs scored. Ford also clocked nine doubles, worked 34 walks and stole nine bases. The two-time ECAC Division I South Pitcher of the Week was also named an NFCA Second Team All-American and the Colonial Athletic Association Pitcher of the Year.
Allen capped off her first season in a Penn uniform with a .383 batting average and an Ivy League-best 13 home runs and 43 RBI. She also connected on nine doubles and one triple for .759 slugging percentage, which was also tops in the Ivy League. Allen posted an on-base percentage of .438, scored a team-high 34 runs and swiped 14 bases en route to being a unanimous selection as the Ivy League Rookie of the Year. For her efforts, she also named an NFCA All-Mid-Atlantic Region Second Team selection and First Team All-Ivy League.
| Name | Year | Position | Institution |
| Player of the Year | |||
| Elise Fortier | Sr. | SS | Fordham University |
| Pitcher of the Year | |||
| Jailyn Ford | So. | P | James Madison University |
| Rookie of the Year | |||
| Leah Allen | Fr. | OF | University of Pennsylvania |
| First Team | ||
| Name | Year | Institution |
| Catcher | ||
| Megan Baltzell | Jr. | Longwood University |
| First Base | ||
| Maggie Hawkins | So. | Hofstra University |
| Second Base | ||
| Kristen Filicia | Sr. | Fairfield University |
| Third Base | ||
| Brooke Blankenship | Jr. | George Mason University |
| Shortstop | ||
| Elise Fortier | Sr. | Fordham University |
| Outfield | ||
| Jayme Mask | Sr. | Boston University |
| Eileen McCann | Gr. | Iona College |
| Leah Allen | Fr. | University of Pennsylvania |
| Utility | ||
| Jailyn Ford | So. | James Madison University |
| Designated Player | ||
| Morgan McCalmon | So. | Dartmouth College |
| Pitcher | ||
| Laura Messina | Jr. | Central Connecticut State University |
| Taylor Pirone | Jr. | Hofstra University |
| Second Team | ||
| Name | Year | Institution |
| Catcher | ||
| Taylor Hall | Jr. | University of Maryland – Baltimore County |
| First Base | ||
| Kristen Turner | Fr. | Iona College |
| Second Base | ||
| Alexis Watanabe | So. | Lehigh University |
| Third Base | ||
| Morgan Decker | So. | Lehigh University |
| Shortstop | ||
| Maggie Cocks | So. | University at Albany |
| Outfield | ||
| Taylor Kuzma | Jr. | Marist College |
| Jackie Bates | Jr. | Rutgers University |
| Chandler Howard | Jr. | Rutgers University |
| Utility | ||
| Natalie Hernandez | Sr. | University of Illinois – Chicago |
| Designated Player | ||
| Carly Hansis | So. | College of Charleston |
| Pitcher | ||
| Brittany MacFawn | Sr. | University at Albany |
| Allison Cukrov | Jr. | Stony Brook University |
