2019 Big West Softball All-Conference Release
After claiming the 2019 Big West softball title, Cal State Fullerton earned its fair share of hardware as four individuals claimed major honors.
The Titans claimed the Player of the Year in Ari Williams, the Freshman Pitcher of the Year in Dani Martinez, the Co-Freshman Field Player of the Year in Alexa Neil and the Coach of the Year in Kelly Ford. The other three awards were divided among three schools as Brooke Yanez of UC Davis was named Pitcher of the Year, Kiarra Crockett-Pope of CSUN claimed the Co-Freshman Field Player of the Year and Nichole Fry of Long Beach State was named Defensive Player of the Year.
BROOKE YANEZ, UC DAVIS
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Sophomore • Ventura, Calif. • Buena HS
• Third UC Davis pitcher to be named Pitcher of the Year and first since 2012
• Fifth player in league history win both Freshman Pitcher and Pitcher of the Year awards in a career
• Five-time Big West Athlete of the Week this season
• Leads Big West in wins (25), complete games (25), earned run average (1.03), innings pitched (203.2), strikeouts (273), strikeouts per game (9.04) and shutouts (7)
• Ranks sixth in the NCAA in ERA, 26th in hits allowed per seven innings (4.40), tied for 28th in shutouts, seventh in strikeouts, 14th in strikeouts per seven innings and 14th in victories.
• School record 273 strikeouts in 2019 is also 9th-most in Big West single season history
• Pitched perfect game against Sacramento State on March 12, the first for the Aggies since 1993
• Threw a no-hitter against Cal Poly on April 14.
• Recorded 18 strikeouts in 11.1 innings of work on May 9 against Hawai’i
• In conference play went 9-6 with a 0.98 ERA in 100.2 innings, striking out 126 against 31 walks while allowing just 63 hits and 24 runs.
ARI WILLIAMS, CAL STATE FULLERTON
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Senior • Outfielder • Moreno Valley, Calif. • Canyon Springs HS
• 13th player to be named Player of the Year from Cal State Fullerton
• Ranks third in the Big West in batting (.380), first in triples (7), first in stolen bases (21), ninth in home runs (6), fifth in RBI (40), 4th in hits (62), 10th in runs scored (34) and third in total bases (101)
• Ranks fifth in the NCAA in triples
• First Titan to reach base in every conference game since 2002
• Recorded at least one base hit in 40 of 53 games
• Batted .418 with a homer, 15 RBI, four triples, five doubles, nine walks, 10 stolen bases and scored 17 runs in conference play. Also posted a .500 on-base percentage and slugged .657 against conference foes.
• Three-time Big West Athlete of the Week this season
• Has posted 12 multi-RBI games and 15 multi-hit games
• Has reached base in 21 straight games
• Recorded five games of three RBI, one game with four RBI and two four-hit games
NICHOLE FRY, LONG BEACH STATE
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Senior • Shortstop • Lake Elsinore, Calif. • Santiago HS
• Third winner of the Defensive Player of the Year award in the last six years for Long Beach State
• Committed only five errors in 165 total chances with 109 assists for a .970 fielding percentage
• Helped turn seven double plays
• Committed only two errors in 21 conference games and none in her last 17
DANI MARTINEZ, CAL STATE FULLERTON
FRESHMAN PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Bellflower, Calif. • Richard Gahr HS
• Third Titan to win Freshman Pitcher of the Year award
• Two-time Pitcher of the Week and five-time Freshman of the Week this season
• Is 17-6 with a 1.83 ERA in 153.2 innings of work. Also has 144 strikeouts, eight complete games and two shutouts while allowing just 95 hits, 45 runs (40 earned) and walking 45
• Could become first Titan pitcher since 2009 to finish season with a sub-2.00 ERA
• Against conference opponents she was 9-2 with a 1.12 ERA in 75.2 innings and posted seven complete games. Opponents also batted just .158
• Struck out career-high 11 in 9.0 innings against Cal Poly on May 4
• Allowed two hits or fewer in 15 appearances
ALEXA NEIL, CAL STATE FULLERTON
CO-FRESHMAN FIELD PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Utility • Ramona, Calif. • Ramona HS
• Second Cal State Fullerton player to earn Freshman Field Player of the Year honor
• Ranks eighth in the Big West in batting average (.348), tied for sixth in hits (57), tied for second in stolen bases (12) and is seventh in on-base percentge (.418)
• Stands four runs and seven hits shy of Titans freshman records
• Tied for team lead with 15 multi-hit games, four of which were three-hit contests
• CSF is 29-2 when she scores a run this season
• Committed only one error and recorded 35 assists in 78 chances in the field during conference play
KIARRA CROCKETT-POPE, CSUN
CO-FRESHMAN FIELD PLAYER OF THE YEAR
First Baseman • Long Beach, Calif. • Cerritos HS
• Third Matador to earn Freshman Field Player of the Year honor
• Batted .305 with four homers and 10 RBI during conference play
• Recorded eight multi-hit games and six multi-RBI contests
• Struck out only 14 times in 134 at-bats
• Committed only two errors on 293 total chances all season, posting a .993 fielding percentage at first base. Also helped turn 15 double plays
KELLY FORD, CAL STATE FULLERTON
COACH OF THE YEAR
• First coach in league history to win four consecutive Coach of the Year honors
• Led Cal State Fullerton to its fourth straight Big West title, the third time in league history a program has achieved the feat
• 18 wins in conference play matches last season’s output, the most for the program since 2003 (20)
• Titans have won 30+ games in each of the last six seasons
• Fourth straight year of 16 or more conference victories
• Has recorded 12 or more wins in conference play in every season at the helm of the program
• Lost back-to-back games only three times all season and not since March 21
The league’s All-Conference teams are highlighted by Hawai’i’s Nicole Lopez earning her third first team All-Big West honor. She becomes the 37th player all-time to achieve the feat. Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State and Hawai’i all earned three first team selections. The full All-Conference teams are available in the link above.