Leigh Ann LaFave Named MIAA MVP Second-Straight Year
ALMA, Mich. - Alma College softball individuals were honored
by the league coaches as four different student-athletes were named to
All-MIAA. Senior pitcher Leigh Ann LaFave (Escanaba) was named
the MIAA Most Valuable Player for the second year in a row and named to
the All-MIAA first team for the fourth time in her career, making her
an MIAA Athlete of Distinction. Classmate and pitcher Melissa Tavidian (New Hudson/South Lyon) earned first team honors for the second year in a row while freshman catcher Shannon Harrington (Dewitt/St. Johns) also earned first team recognition. First baseman Megan Colligan (Northville/Novi) was named to the All-MIAA second team.
The team has combined for a 29-8 overall record and 14-2 mark in MIAA
action. They Scots won their ninth straight MIAA regular season title
in 2005 and reclaimed the MIAA Tournament Championship May 6 by
defeating Calvin College, 3-2.
The Scots move into NCAA Tournament play as they host the first round regional May 13-15 at Scots Park in Alma, Mich.
LaFave boasts a 0.16 ERA in league games on the season with an
undefeated 7-0 mark on the year. In seven appearances, she threw five
complete games and pitched 44 innings, scattering 18 hits and just one
run, striking out 59. She held opponents to a batting average of just
.122. She was second only to Tavidian with 59 strikeouts.
Tavidian had an MIAA ERA of 1.14, making eight appearances and throwing
seven complete games on the year in 49 innings pitched. She allowed
just 10 runs on 27 hits, striking out 67. An asset in the field as
well, Tavidian led the team in assists with 16. She led the league in
strikeouts with 67 and was twice named MIAA Pitcher of the Week on the
season en route to a 6-2 MIAA record.
Harrington made 13 starts, appearing in 15 of 16 league games. She
batted .457, collecting 16 hits - including four doubles and 11 RBI -
and scoring seven runs. As a starting catcher and in the
outfield, Harrington boasts an error-free fielding percentage with 64
putouts and 6 assists.
Colligan, a junior, batted .440 on the season in MIAA games, starting
all 16 games of the year. She had 22 hits and four runs scored. She had
two home runs and three doubles in league games, including 15 RBI. Her
slugging percentage of .620 led all starters.
Laura Bell (Walled Lake/Walled Lake Western), Eileen Butler (Vestaburg), Amy Gaudard (Mt. Pleasant) and Mary Pietsch (Rogers City) were recognized with honorable mention accolades for their performances on the season.
Bell nailed four home runs in MIAA contests to tie for first in that
category, batting .349 and starting all 16 games in the league. In 43
at bats, she had 15 hits and 11 RBI. Her slugging percentage of.698 was
good for fifth in MIAA games.
Butler also served as a starting catcher for the Scots and led the
league in fielding percentage with an error-free performance behind the
plate with 75 put outs and eight assists.
A freshman shortstop, Gaudard made just three miscues in her first year
with the Scots. She hit .347, starting all MIAA contest and collecting
17 hits including three doubles and a triple.
Senior Mary Pietsch started in center field for the Scots, making all
16 starts. In 30 at bats she collecting 10 hits and scored 11 runs and
knocked in six runs. She was perfect in stolen base attempts on the
year with five successful steals.
Posted: Wed, May 11th, 2005 at 6:37PM
