Eight Wildcats Named All-Big Ten; NU Sweeps Player and Pitcher of the Year Honors
May 8, 2008
2008 Conference Office Softball All-Big Ten Release (PDF Format)
EVANSTON, Ill. -- A school-record eight Wildcats earned All-Big Ten honors this season, while Big Ten co-champion Northwestern also won its fourth-straight conference Player of the Year and third-consecutive conference Pitcher of the Year awards. Junior Tammy Williams (Roscoe, Mo./Osceola) was named the Big Ten Player of the Year this season after leading the league with 21 runs scored while ranking second in batting average (.455), RBIs (23) and on-base percentage (.603). She follows in the footsteps of 2007 NU graduate Garland Cooper, who won the award from 2005-07 to become the conference's only three-time Player of the Year. Sophomore Lauren Delaney (Jefferson City, Mo./Helias) was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Year after earning the win in all 18 of Northwestern's conference victories while leading the league in opponents' batting average (.146) and strikeouts (188). Her strikeout total in Big Ten play is the second-best in conference history behind only NU All-American Lisa Ishikawa, who fanned 219 in 1984. Delaney's award comes on the heels of back-to-back Pitcher of the Year nods for two-time Northwestern All-American Eileen Canney. Both Williams and Delaney were named to the All-Big Ten first team, while six of their teammates were honored on the All-Big Ten second team. The eight total honors ties the 2003 squad for the most in school history, but 2008 marks the first time NU has earned so many accolades by placing 'Cats only on the first and second teams. For Williams, the first-team award is the second of her career and her third All-Big Ten nod overall. She was a third-team selection a year ago despite being named a first-team All-American. Delaney was picked for the All-Big Ten third team last year as a freshman. Junior Erin Dyer (Homer Glen, Ill./Lockport) picked up her first-career All-Big Ten award as the second-team catcher after finishing second in the conference with eight home runs, tied for the third-best total in league history during conference contests. She also ranked third with 21 RBIs, fifth with an .828 slugging percentage and eighth in batting average (.397) and on-base percentage (.500). Sophomore Nicole Pauly (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) was named to the All-Big Ten second team at the second base position after being the first-team honoree as a freshman. She led the league with 53 total bases while finishing second in slugging percentage (.898) and home runs (8), and third in runs scored (20). Pauly earned two of the last three Big Ten Player of the Week honors during the 2008 season. Sophomore Emily Haug (Jefferson City, Mo./Helias) earned an All-Big Ten second team selection at the designated player position, her first-career conference accolade. She batted .370 with two doubles and a home run in seven starts and nine pinch-hit appearances for the 'Cats in league play. A trio of Northwestern freshmen earned second-team All-Big Ten accolades in their first conference seasons: Michelle Batts (Bloomingdale, Ill./Glenbard North) at first base, Robin Thompson (Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King) at third base and Kelly Quinn (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) in the outfield. Batts hit six home runs to rank fifth, had 16 RBIs to rank eighth and recorded 39 total bases to rank ninth in the Big Ten this season. She hit .290 from the No. 3 spot in the Northwestern order and had several big hits, including a game-winning, 14th-inning RBI double at Penn State. She was named Big Ten Player of the Week on April 14. Thompson was the complete package of speed and power for NU in Big Ten play, leading the league in stolen bases while ranking sixth in slugging percentage. She recorded two doubles, two triples and three home runs while swiping seven bags in conference games. Quinn ranked eighth in the conference with 14 runs scored to earn her second-team honor, batting .288 in conference play. Her RBI single in the sixth inning in the first game of a doubleheader at No. 6 Michigan proved to be the game-winning hit in NU's 2-1 victory. Northwestern led the league with eight total honorees, followed by Michigan with seven.
The Big Ten also announced its 2008 Sportsmanship Award winners from each school, with Northwestern junior Jessica Rigas (River Forest, Ill./Oak Park River Forest) picking up this year's honor for the Wildcats.
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