Clark Named MAC Player of the Year

MIDLAND, Mich. – Five members of the Eastern Michigan University softball team were honored with accolades by the Mid-American Conference Tuesday night, with junior Lauren Clark being named the 2006 MAC Player of the Year. Clark was also named to the All-MAC first team along with senior Katie Grens. The Eagles also had two members of the All-MAC second team and one honoree on the All-MAC Freshman Team.

Clark and Grens are the first pair of Eagles to earn first-team honors in the same season since 1996. Senior Nikki Denman and sophomore Ashley Strauss were each named to the All-MAC Second Team, while Heather Han was named to the All-MAC Freshman Team.

Clark is the second player in school history to be named the conference player of the year joining EMU Athletic Hall of Famer, Melissa Drouillard who won the league award in 1996. Clark spent most of the 2006 season chasing and breaking records set by Drouilard. Clark broke Drouillard’s EMU’s single-season home run record with 12 homers, and ranks second on the career home runs list, one behind Drouillard.

The junior shortstop ranks in the top-three in the MAC in seven offensive categories including: hits, home runs, batting average, doubles, RBI, total bases, and slugging percentage. She was named MAC West Division Player of the Week on four separate occasions, has 19 multi-hit games this season and has cranked out three hits in four separate contests. Clark has 10 games this season where she knocked two or more runs, including four three-RBI games. On the season she has a .370 batting average, 61 hits, 12 home runs, 39 RBI, 14 doubles, scored 30 runs, drew 14 walks, stole eight bases, and racked up 113 total bases.

Grens earned an at-large bid to the conference first team. She totaled 28 hits, four home runs, and 17 RBI to date for the Eagles. She went 4-for-6 with a home run, RBI, and scored three runs during an EMU sweep of Toledo, April 21. The senior catcher knocked in all three runs for EMU during a 3-0 victory against Ball State, April 29, going 2-for-3 with a home run. She has eight multi-hit games this season.

Denman is a repeat second team honoree at utility position, earning the award in 2004. She leads the MAC and is ranked nationally in saves. She recorded 87 strikeouts in 118 and 1/3 innings to date this season with a 10-8 record and a 2.37 ERA. The senior knocked in 14 runs and scored 12 times while posting 24 hits. She was named MAC Female Scholar Athlete of the Week, April 9, after cranking two home runs at the plate and posting a 1-1 record with two saves and a 1.50 ERA on the mound. Denman ranks third on the all-time EMU career home runs list.

Strauss is one of two Eagles to start every game this season. She has 14 multi-hit games this season including cranking out three-hits in six different contests. She was named MAC West Division Player of the Week and Female Scholar Athlete of the Week, April 2, after batting .455 (10-for-22) while totaling a .955 slugging percentage, three home runs and nine RBI for the Eagles. She hit a two-out two-run extra inning walk-off home run in the bottom of the eighth to cap a 5-3 EMU come-from-behind victory against Northern Illinois, April 1. The first baseman tied an EMU record for extra-base hits in a single-game after a 3-for-3 day with two doubles and a home run against Ball State, April 30.

Han is the first Eagle to be named to the All-Freshman Team. She showed great versatility by starting multiple games at catcher, third base and right field. She chose the perfect time to hit her first career home run, a two-out two-run blast in the bottom of the seventh inning giving the Eagles a 4-3 victory over Toledo, March 25. The walk-off homer was the first of three round-trippers Han has hit this season. Han has totaled 21 hits, 14 RBI, 11 runs scored and drawn 13 walks to date this season.

The Eagles (26-26; 14-8 MAC) qualified for the MAC Tournament for the second year in a row. As the No. 5 seed, EMU will face the No. 4 seed Central Michigan University in the opening round at 5 p.m. The double-elimination tournament will be held in Midland’s Currie Stadium. This year marks the sixth-time that the Eagles have qualified for the post season tournament and the program’s first back-to-back appearances since the 1983-84 seasons.

All-MAC First Team
1B Leslie Stong, Toledo
2B Amanda Heckaman, Western Michigan
SS Lauren Clark, Eastern Michigan
3B Gina Rango, Bowling Green
C Abby Habicht, Bowling Green
OF Kim Hamilton, Kent State
OF Whitney Lebowitz, Kent State
OF Katie Niemi, Western Michigan
P Britney Robinson, Kent State
P Krysten Schumaker, Western Michigan
DP Kristen Hays, Miami
UP Hayley Wiemer, Bowling Green
AL* Jessica Toocheck, Kent State
AL* Amy Hudson, Central Michigan
AL* Katie Grens, Eastern Michigan

All-MAC Second Team
1B Ashley Strauss, Eastern Michigan
2B Ashley Ball, Kent State
SS Gina Muratori, Toledo
3B Taylor Yancey, Ball State
C Becky Bartosz, Western Michigan
OF Carrese Moody, Akron
OF Jacque Benedict, Central Michigan
OF Kristi Strange, Western Michigan
P Liz Vrabel, Bowling Green
P Michelle Sauter, Ohio
DP Desiree Miller, Bowling Green
UP Nikki Denman, Eastern Michigan
AL* Sara Zilles, Akron
AL* Mandi Sayres, Western Michigan
AL* Julie Boyes, Akron
AL* Amanda Pick, Ball State

All-MAC Freshman Team
P Julie Boyes, Akron
IF Jamie Stanclift, Akron
P/UT Hayley Wiemer, Bowling Green
DP Desiree Miller, Bowling Green
OF Erin Zilka, Buffalo
P Ali Pettit, Central Michigan
UT Heather Han, Eastern Michigan
C Randi Kreiter, Northern Illinois
C Alison Hess, Toledo
UT Mandi Sayres, Western Michigan
1B Lauren Fuller, Western Michigan

Player of the Year
Lauren Clark, Eastern Michigan

Pitcher of the Year
Brittney Robinson, Kent State

Freshman of the Year
Hayley Wiemer, Bowling Green

Coach of the Year
Kathy Leitke, Western Michigan

Eastern Michigan Athletics

Related News

Related Videos