Armagost Named To Top 50 “Watch List”

Armagost Named To Top 50 "Watch List" For The 2013 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year

Oklahoma City, Okla. - For the second consecutive season, Pacific senior all-american Nikki Armagost has been selected for the "Watch List" for the 2013 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America announced today. Now in its 12th year, the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, given by the National Governing Body for softball in the United States, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by female collegiate softball players across the country. Armagost is one of just two players in the Big West to be named to the preseason list as she joins Jessica Iwata of Hawai'i among the nation's elite.

In 2012, Armagost was named a 2012 NFCA All-American. She is a two-time NFCA All-Region honoree and is the two-time reigning Big West Player of the Year. Her .433 batting average in 2012 ranks as the second-best average in program history and seventh-best average in conference history. In addition to her batting, in the field, Armagost was one of the best defenders in the Big West and the country in 2012 as she committed just one error throughout the year to finish with a .996 fielding percentage. For her career, Nikki's fielding percentage is .991.

Oklahoma senior Keilani Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) headlines the list of 50 after earning the honor in 2012 as a junior. The pre-season "Watch List" includes 27 seniors, 15 juniors and eight sophomores, with freshman ineligible for consideration. (Freshman can be considered for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award once they have competed at the collegiate level.) Athletes named to the "Watch List" represent 34 NCAA Division I universities and 12 athletic conferences. While Tennessee leads the way among universities with four athlete representatives, the Pacific-12 (Pac-12) Conference and the Southeastern (SEC) Conference each have eight member schools represented.

Previous recipients of the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, the most prestigious individual honor in NCAA Division I Softball, are UCLA catcher Stacey Nuveman (2002), Texas pitcher Cat Osterman (2003, 2005 and 2006), Florida State pitcher Jessica Van der Linden (2004), Tennessee pitcher Monica Abbott (2007), Virginia Tech pitcher Angela Tincher (2008), Washington pitcher Danielle Lawrie (2009 and 2010), Stanford shortstop Ashley Hansen (2011) and Ricketts.

The Top 25 Finalists for the 2013 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award will be announced April 10. While an athlete does not have to be on the "Watch List" to be considered for the Top 25, the eventual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will come from the Top 25 Finalists. The Top 10 Finalists will be announced May 8 and the Top 3 Finalists will be announced May 22. On May 28 prior to the start of the 2013 NCAA Women's College World Series (WCWS) in Oklahoma City, the 2013 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be revealed.

2013 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Watch List

Name (School) - Year - Position - Hometown

Emily Allard (Northwestern) - Senior - Utility - Antioch, Calif.

Nikki Armagost (Pacific) - Senior - Pitcher/Utility - Andover, Kan.

Marisa Bast (Northwestern) - Junior - Infield - Orange, Calif.

B.B. Bates (UCLA) - Senior - Outfield - Victorville, Calif.

Cassidy Bell (Penn State) - Senior - Outfield - Bakersfield, Calif.

Kayla Braud (Alabama) - Senior - Outfield - Eugene, Ore.

Amy Buntin (Notre Dame) - Senior - Catcher - Franklin, Tenn.

Whitney Canion (Baylor) - RS Junior - Pitcher - Aledo, Texas

Lauren Chamberlain (Oklahoma) - Sophomore - Trabuco Canyon, Calif.

Raven Chavanne (Tennessee) - Senior - Third base/Outfield - Thousand Oaks, Calif.

J.C. Clayton (BYU) - Senior - Infield - Hollister, Calif.

Brigette Del Ponte (Arizona) - Senior - Infield - Peoria, Ariz.

Mel Dumezich (Texas A&M) - Senior - Pitcher/Infield - Whiting, Ind.

Dallas Escobedo (Arizona State) - Junior - Pitcher - Glendale, Ariz.

Rachele Fico (LSU) - Senior - Pitcher - Oxford, Conn.

Amber Freeman (Arizona State) - Sophomore - Catcher - Lakewood, Calif.

Olivia Galati (Hofstra) - Senior - Pitcher/Designated Player - West Babylon, N.Y.

Teagan Gerhart (Stanford) - Senior - Pitcher - Norco, Calif.

Lauren Gibson (Tennessee) - Senior - Infield- Pasadena, Md.

Tara Glover (Boise State) - Junior - Outfield - Grants Pass, Ore.

Jolene Henderson (Cal) - Senior - Pitcher/First base - Elk Grove, Calif.

Taylor Hoagland (Texas) - Senior - Outfield/Third base - Flower Mound, Texas

Kylene Hopkins (Michigan State) - Senior - Outfield - Menifee, Calif.

Kaila Hunt (Alabama) - Junior - Infield - Evans, Ga.

Kaitlin Inglesby (Washington) - Junior - Pitcher - Portland, Ore.

Jessica Iwata (Hawaii) - Senior - Shortstop - Lihu'e, Hawaii

Alix Johnson (Arizona State) - Junior - Outfield - San Diego, Calif.

Stephany LaRosa (UCLA) - Sophomore - Diamond Bar, Calif.

Blaire Luna (Texas) - Senior - Pitcher - Austin, Texas

Hayley Miles (San Diego State) - Junior - Utility - Antelope, Calif.

Jessica Moore (Oregon) - Senior - Pitcher - Sutter, Calif.

Nerissa Myers (Louisiana-Lafayette) - Senior - Infield - Petal, Miss.

Sara Nevins (South Florida) - Junior - Pitcher - Pinellas Park, Fla.

Haley Outon (Houston) - Junior - Catcher - Pflugerville, Texas

Samantha Pappas (Oregon) - Senior - Outfield - Mission Viejo, Calif.

Ellen Renfroe (Tennessee) - Junior - Pitcher - Jackson, Tenn.

Jenna Rich (Stanford) - Senior - Infield - El Segundo, Calif.

Keilani Ricketts (Oklahoma) - Senior - Pitcher - San Jose, Calif.

Shellie Robinson (USC Upstate) - Sophomore - Outfield - DeLand, Fla.

Hannah Rogers (Florida) - Junior - Pitcher - Lake Wales, Fla.

Madison Shipman (Tennessee) - Junior - Infield - Valencia, Calif.

Jessica Shults (Oklahoma) - Senior - Catcher - Valencia, Calif.

Tess Sito (Georgia) - Senior - Pitcher/Utility - Elyria, Ohio

Chelsea Thomas (Missouri) - Senior - Pitcher - Pleasantville, Iowa

Jackie Traina (Alabama) - Junior - Pitcher/Designated player - Naples, Fla.

Kirsten Verdun (DePaul) - Junior - Pitcher/First Base - Coal City, Ill.

Haylie Wagner (Michigan) - Sophomore - Pitcher - Orange, Calif.

Devon Wallace (Arkansas) - Sophomore - Utility - Double Oak, Texas

Hallie Wilson (Arizona) - Sophomore - Outfield - Santa Ana, Calif.

Hanna Winter (Stanford) - Sophomore - Infield - Camarillo, Calif.