AMHERST, Massachusetts -- Five members of the Amherst College softball team were named All-League by a vote of coaches in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC). The Jeffs boast the highest representation on the 14-member squad, which has delegates from six institutions. This is the second year that an All-NESCAC team has been selected.
Sophomore Allison Schwarting (Los Angeles, CA) makes her second appearance on the All-NESCAC team after leading the Jeffs both at the plate and on the mound. The pitcher compiled an 18-5 record in 150.0 innings of work, striking out 109 batters while maintaining a 1.49 ERA. Named NESCAC Player of the Week twice this season and three times as a rookie, the righthander also batted .406 with 40 runs, 16 RBI and 23 stolen bases to lead the team. In just two years, Schwarting has compiled a 31-8 record and 1.22 ERA with 213 strikeouts and just 42 walks in 45 games. Schwarting was also one of four Jeffs named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team.
Senior Sarah Rinaldi (Washington, DC) also repeats as an All-NESCAC selection as one of the first two women to ever play four years of varsity softball at Amherst. Rinaldi closed out her career with a .350 batting average with 19 stolen bases and a team-leading five home runs and 31 RBI. Also named to the GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-District Team, the outfielder holds every career hitting record, including 84 RBI and 49 stolen bases while batting .358 over four years.
Sophomore Liza Feldman (Sudbury, MA) earns All-League recognition after the shortstop claimed the season's final NESCAC Player of the Week honors. Battling Wheaton for a berth in the NCAA New England Championship game, Feldman tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the 9th inning before knocking in the equalizing and game-winning runs with a double in the 10th for a 4-3 victory over last year's regional representative. The sophomore was also named to the NCAA New England Regional All-Tournament Team.
Both in their first year with Lord Jeff softball, junior Vicki Gonzalez (Miami, FL) and rookie Meghan Nelson (Middletown, CT) round out the Amherst representatives after helping the Jeffs to their first-ever NCAA appearance. Amherst concluded the 1998 season as its finest campaign in its four-year history with a 31-8 record as the regional runner-up.
Player School Yr. Pos G Avg H RBI R HR SB Carrie Hironaka Tufts Jr. OF 34 .342 40 15 24 2 4 Sarah Rinaldi Amherst Sr. OF 36 .350 41 31 32 5 19 Vicki Gonzalez Amherst Jr. OF 39 .333 39 13 31 0 21 Laura Goldberg Wesleyan Sr. OF 27 .506 41 7 25 1 24 Anne Mortesen Colby Sr. IF 34 .409 45 33 30 3 2 Tinesha Clark Tufts Fr. IF 32 .385 40 15 32 0 14 Jen O'Malley Tufts Sr. IF 34 .360 36 25 19 2 2 Liza Feldman Amherst So. IF 38 .209 30 17 21 4 2 Abbey DeRocker Bates Jr. IF 19 .369 24 16 10 2 5 Brianna Stanton Trinity Fr. IF 25 .338 22 13 15 1 7 Meghan Nelson Amherst Fr. C 39 .295 31 18 32 0 4 Sarah Kollman Wesleyan Gr. C 23 .356 21 16 12 0 1 Player School Yr. Pos G IP ERA W-L-S K Allison Schwarting Amherst So. P 27 150.0 1.49 18-5-3 109 Beth Mooradian Trinity So. P 16 93.0 0.72 11-3-0 56 # # # 5/18/98