Easton Names Three Alabama Players All-Americans
6/4/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. ?? Lauren Parker, Brittany Rogers and Chrissy Owens all added to their list of awards this season when Easton Sports, Inc. announced them as members of the 2007 Easton All-American first team.
Alabama was also named one of four Easton Schools of the Year for its success on the field. The Tide compiled a record of 55-10 and competed in its eighth straight NCAA Regional and third consecutive NCAA Regional after winning the school's fifth NCAA Regional Championship.
This is the second straight season that Alabama has had three Easton All-Americans and third time that three players were named to the first team. The three Crimson Tide players were also named to the NFCA All-American team last week Parker was a first team selection while Rogers was named to the second and Owens was a third team pick.
Parker, a sophomore second baseman from Port Neches, Texas, transferred from Baylor this year and put together an outstanding season for the Crimson Tide to garner first team All-American recognition. Her .457 batting avg. was the second highest total in school history behind four-time All-American Kelly Kretschman's .467 mark in 1998. Her .761 slugging pct. was the also the second highest total behind Kretschman's .986 1998 record while Parker's .509 on-base percentage was the fifth best total.
In 55 games Parker added 63 hits, 47 runs scored, 11 doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 45 RBI and 15 stolen bases. She is ranked fifth nationally with her .457 battting avg. and is 21st in the country in slugging pct. She improved her avg. 191 points from her freshman season and hit nine home runs after not hitting a single one last season with the Bears. She batted .444 against ranked opponents, including a 7-for-11 weekend at No. 8 LSU. She tallied hits in 37 of her 55 games with 21 multi-hit contests. She scored a run in 36 outings and drove in a run in 26 games. She led the team with 18 two-out RBI.
Rogers, a sophomore center fielder from Dacula, Ga., was named first team All-American for the first time in her collegiate career. She was a second team pick last season as a freshman. She finished the year batting over .400 for the second consecutive season. It was only the ninth time in school history a player hit over .400. She also set the single season school record with 48 stolen bases. Her 68 runs scored were the third most in a single season and her 88 hits matched her freshman total for fourth-best in the record books.
Playing in all 65 games, Rogers batted .402 with eight doubles, four triples, four home runs and 34 RBI. She accomplished the unthinkable by hitting inside and outside the park home runs from both the left and right side of the plate this season. Her 116 total bases led the team and she posted a .426 on-base percentage. She is fifth in the nation in stolen bases per game and ninth in runs per game. She also ranks in the top-50 in batting avg. She had a hit in 21 of the team's 22 games from Feb. 10 to March 14 and led the team with 30 multi-hit games for the season.
Owens, a junior pitcher from Miami, Fla., received her first selection as a first team All-American. She finished the year with a 24-5 overall record and 1.30 ERA with 144 strikeouts. She posted 11 shutouts and combined for five others on the year. Her 11 shutouts are the second most in single season history and her 24 victories are tied for the fifth most in a single year.
The right-handed hurler only allowed two home runs in 149 innings, the fewest of any pitcher in the SEC, a conference which had two other All-American pitchers. Owens started the season 16-0 and is now ranked 18th nationally in ERA. She is just the 13th pitcher in school history to record 20 wins in a season and has been part of an Alabama team that has three straight seasons with two 20-game winners, the only school in the country to accomplish that feat. She is also only the fifth player to reach the 50-win plateau for her career. She also tied the school record with her 16th career save this season.
The Crimson Tide now has 24 Easton All-American selections in the program's 11 years. All three of the 2007 All-Americans will return for the 2008 season along with three other All-South Region selections.
2007 Easton Schools of the Year
Alabama
Florida
Hawai'i
LSU
2007 Easton All-American 1st Team
Stacey Nelson, Florida
Kate Robinson, Hawai'i
Chrissy Owens, Alabama
Killian Roessner, LSU
Nichole Willis, Fresno State
Amber Jackson, Maryland
Clare Warwick, Hawai'i
Lauren Parker, Alabama
Kara Nelson, Illinois State
Caitlin Lever, Georgia Tech
Krista Coburn, UCLA
Brittany Rogers, Alabama
Lisa Modglin, Cal Poly SLO
Robin Mackin, Fresno State
Lisa Dodd, UCLA
2007 Easton All-American 2nd Team
Brandice Balschmiter, Massachusetts
Laurel Sagartz, Washington University, St. Louis
Annie Kinsey, Pennsylvania
Leslie Klein, LSU
Jodi Norton, BYU
Jessica Moore, Liberty
Randi Gillespie, Long Island University
Kellie Middleton, Georgia
Tara Oltman, Creighton
Aileen Morales, Georgia Tech
Kim Waleszonia, Florida
Shannon Nicholson, Illinois State
Cambria Miranda, Oregon State
Tyleen Tausaga, Hawai'i
Veronica Wootson, Florida State
2007 Easton All-American 3rd Team
Vanessa Rodrigue, San Francisco State
Amy Thomas, Cal Baptist
Sharon Bell, St. Gregory's University
Candice Molinari, Massachusetts
Sara Dyer, Tulsa
Chantal Millard, Cal Baptist
Micah Truax, Connecticut
Stephanie Bour, Cameron University
Jennifer Whiteley, BYU
Lauren Clark, Eastern Michigan
Lauren Murphy, Harvard
Katie Jones, UT Arlington
Ashley Hall, Purdue
Candace Thomas, Cal Baptist
Kelly Waskeiwicz, Salisbury University
2007 Easton All-American Junior College Team
Alyssa Gutierrez, Cypress College
Mandy Pongs, Mt. San Antonio College
Brittany Welch, Tallahassee Community College
Ashley Boyd, Cypress College
Francesca Gonzales, Mt. San Antonio College
Katie Cornelison, Cypress College
Katie Baldwin, Mt. San Antonio College
Nicole Wells, Sacramento City College
Nichole Whaley, Mt. San Antonio College
Cindy Oseguera, Sacramento City College
Shea Lodes, Tallahassee Community College
