University of Minnesota Athletics
Two Gophers Named Player of the Year Finalists
4/9/2014 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 9, 2014
USA Softball Release | Moulton's Bio | Richardson's Bio
OKLAHOMA CITY - Minnesota softball senior Sara Moulton and junior Kaitlyn Richardson were both named top-25 finalists for the 2014 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America and USA Softball announced Wednesday. The award winner will be announced at the opening of the 2014 NCAA Women's College World Series (WCWS) in Oklahoma City.
The award considered the most prestigious honor in Division I women's collegiate softball recognizes the outstanding athletic achievement by female players across the country.
Moulton and Richardson join Sierra Romero and Haylie Wagner of Michigan as the four Big Ten representatives among the 25 finalists.
Through 35 games, 2014 has been a remarkable campaign for both Moulton and Richardson.
A senior from Eagan, Minn., Moulton has pitched her way to a 19-4 record and a 1.16 ERA while tying for the national lead in shutouts with 10. She leads the Big Ten and is ninth in the nation with her 19 wins and she leads the conference with 181 strikeouts. She holds career school records for wins (104), complete games (103), and shutouts (45) and is one strikeout shy of tying the school record of 1,122.
Richardson has been one of the country's top hitters thus far in 2014. The Phoenix, Ariz. native is hitting .463, on pace for the second-best season average in school history, with an on-base percentage of .587. She has hit 14 doubles and six home runs and has struck out just seven times in 125 plate appearances this season. Her 37 RBI are second in the conference. She has the third-most home runs in program history with 26.
Both players were All-Big Ten First Team and NFCA All-Region First Team members in 2013. Richardson was a Third-Team NFCA All-American as a sophomore last season and was named to the Player of the Year Award's top-50 watch list in January.
The 14th-ranked Gophers, standing at 30-5 with an 8-2 Big Ten record, get back to action Friday when they kick off a three-game weekend series against No. 23/25 Northwestern at 6 p.m. at Jane Sage Cowles Stadium. The teams will also play Saturday and Sunday. The final two games are slated to begin at 1 p.m.
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