STANDISH, ME – The 2011 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Softball All-Conference selections have been released and Saint Joseph's College, the 2011 GNAC Champion, is very well represented.
A conference-high eight players from St. Joe's have received honors in a vote by GNAC head coaches held late last week.
Junior outfielder Emily Leverone (Hampton, NH/Winnacunnet), sophomore outfielder Danyelle Shufelt (Sutton, VT/Lyndon Institute) and freshman shortstop Lindsay Moore (Barrington, NH/Dover) earned First Team honors while junior pitcher Maddie Kluna (Standish, ME/Bonny Eagle), senior first baseman Alyssa Dunn (Standish, ME/Bonny Eagle) and freshman utility player Jill Howard (Rochester, NH/Spaulding) were all listed on the Second Team.
Senior pitcher Kiera Walsh (Benton, ME/Lawrence) and freshman second baseman Connie Grovo (Limington, ME/Bonny Eagle) garnered Third Team accolades.
Leverone leads the Monks in hits (64), doubles (17), triples (3), home runs (11), RBI (57), total bases (120), slugging percentage (.863) and on-base percentage (.484) this spring. She has posted 20 multiple-hit games with 15 multiple-RBI performances and notched a 17-game hit streak earlier this season.
Leverone broke the Monks' career records for hits (197) and RBI (167) this spring and also ranks as the team's all-time leader in home runs (27), slugging (.854), OBP (.522) and on-base-plus-slugging (OPS) (1.376).
Shufelt, a Second Team selection as a freshman, is currently hitting .403 (60-149) with team-highs in runs (45) and stolen bases (15) this season. She is just the fourth player in team history to notch at least 60 hits in a season and has not been caught stealing in 23 attempts over two years.
Moore faced the unenviable task of replacing four-year starting shortstop Liddy van der Linden '10 and has filled the position more than capably. Although she has posted a tremendous offensive campaign with a .402 (49-122) batting average and 34 runs, six doubles, five home runs and 33 RBI in 41 starts, it could be said that her defensive prowess has been her most important contribution this spring. The first-year player has anchored the SJC infield with just six errors in 184 attempts for a .967 fielding percentage as the team's starting shortstop.
Kluna, a 2010 Second Team choice, heads up the Monks' pitching staff with a 2.15 ERA and a 13-3 record as a junior. She has allowed 92 hits and just 16 walks with 116 K's in 101 innings in 2011.
Dunn garners All-GNAC honors for the third time in her esteemed career and is hitting .366 (49-134) with 24 runs, nine doubles, four home runs and 28 RBI as a senior. She has cemented her place as one of the finest players in program history and currently ranks third all-time in hits (182) and doubles (42), fifth in home runs (11) and RBI (117), sixth in at bats (483), eighth in games played (158) and slugging (.540), and 10th in batting average (.377).
Howard is enjoying a fine season as the Monks' primary designated hitter and clean-up hitter during her first collegiate season. She is currently hitting .403 (50-124) with 15 runs, three doubles, two home runs and 25 RBI and recently saw her impressive 29-game hitting streak come to an end in the GNAC Tournament.
Walsh, a Second Team All-GNAC selection as a sophomore, collects Third Team honors this season after going 10-1 with a 3.35 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 62.2 innings.
Third Team honoree Connie Grovo, yet another impressive first-year player for St. Joe's, is currently hitting .374 (52-139) with 38 runs, nine doubles, three home runs and 31 RBI as the team's starting second baseman and #2 hitter.
Saint Joseph's (34-8, 21-3 GNAC), the second seed in the 2011 GNAC playoffs, defeated #5 Rivier College on Sunday afternoon to claim the program's first GNAC Championship in four years as a member of the league.
2011 GNAC ALL-CONFERENCE SOFTBALL TEAMS
