Three Golden Flashes Earn All-MAC Honors; Oakley Named Coach of the Year
5/10/2016 5:44:00 PM | Softball
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The 2016 Mid-American Conference regular season championship Kent State softball team had four individuals recognized, as the MAC office announced its postseason awards Tuesday (May 10) afternoon. The highlight was interim head coach Eric Oakley being named Coach of the Year. Junior Maddy Grimm earned All-MAC First Team honors for the second year in a row and was joined by junior Ronnie Ladines on First Team. Sophomore Holly Speers was an All-MAC Second Team selection for the second time in as many years.
"I am thrilled that Maddy, Ronnie and Holly were recognized by the rest of the coaches in the conference," Oakley said. "All three are very deserving of these awards, and it shows the kind of impression they made on opposing coaches while we were going through conference season. We received key contributions from several different players throughout the season, and our success to-date has certainly been the result of a team effort."
Kent State won 9 of its final 10 conference games to finish 16-7 in league play and repeat as MAC regular season champions. This is the second time the Golden Flashes have won back-to-back regular season titles and the program's sixth title overall.
After taking over as interim head coach just prior to the start of the academic year, Oakley was faced with many challenges. On top of replacing 2015 MAC Pitcher of the Year Emma Johnson, he had to hire assistant coaches that would help transition into a new era of Kent State Softball. Oakley led the Flashes to victory in their first seven games of the season en route to setting a program record for wins by a first-year head coach. Under Oakley's guidance, Kent State enters the conference tournament with a 35-20 overall record and has won the fourth-most games in school history.
A native of Stahlstown, Pa., Maddy Grimm was the MAC leader with 24 runs scored, 9 home runs and 57 total bases in conference games. Her .814 slugging percentage was second and she ranked among the top 5 in batting average (.371), on-base percentage (.482) and walks (14). Grimm added 4 doubles and 16 RBIs while becoming Kent State's career leader in home runs and RBIs and setting a single-season record for runs scored.
"I think everybody in the MAC recognizes that Maddy is an exciting player and the type of player that can change the game with one swing," said Oakley. "She continues to put up offensive numbers that nobody has come close to in the rich tradition of this program and was terrific during our run late in the year. First Team recognition is certainly well-deserved and really shows the respect she has around the league, not just for her bat but also for her defense."
A threat in the circle and at the plate, Ronnie Ladines elevated her game down the stretch, going 7-1 with a 0.44 ERA, 41 strikeouts, 7 walks and .180 opponent batting average in 47.2 innings over the final 10 games of the conference season. She threw 33.1 consecutive innings against conference foes without allowing an earned run at one point, which included a stretch of 27.2 scoreless innings. Ladines went 10-5 in league play with four shutouts, 91 strikeouts and 10 complete games. She collected 11 hits, including 4 doubles and 1 home run, in 39 at-bats for a .282 batting average and drove in 8 runs in league play.
"Ronnie really stepped up big for us this year and proved that she is clearly one of the best pitchers in our conference," Oakley said. "She took control right out of the gate and then again at the end when we needed to go on a run to clinch it. Not only was she fantastic as a pitcher but also at the plate. It's fantastic for her to be recognized for both in the utility/pitcher category because both aspects of her game were crucial to our success."
A native of Surrey, B.C., Holly Speers provided power, as well as protection for Grimm, in the cleanup spot for the Flashes. She led the team with 19 RBIs and 16 walks, and was second with 16 runs scored, 7 home runs and a .440 slugging percentage during the conference season. Speers hit four of her NCAA Division I record five home runs in consecutive at-bats to start the conference season vs. Central Michigan on March 25-26.
"Holly's batting average dropped off a bit late in the year, but she was a big part of our success," said Oakley. "She had some incredible hitting feats throughout the year and did great job of protecting Maddy, while also giving us another explosive bat in the lineup."
Kent State earned the top seed in this week's MAC Softball Championship and will play eighth-seeded Central Michigan in the first round at 1 p.m. on Wednesday. The eight-team, double-elimination tournament will be played at Firestone Stadium in Akron with the championship game scheduled for Saturday.
Player of the Year: Taylor Shuey, Miami
Pitcher of the Year: Savannah Jo Dorsey, Ohio
Freshman of the Year: Alex Frenz, Northern Illinois
Coach of the Year: Eric Oakley, Kent State
Nan Harvey Award Winner: Erin Seiler, Akron
All-MAC First Team
C – Emily Naegele, Northern Illinois
1B – Kayti Grable, Northern Illinois
2B – Chandler Rice, Toledo
3B – Maddy Grimm, Kent State
SS – Michaela Schlattman, Miami
OF – Michelle Kriegshauser, Eastern Michigan
OF – Taylor Shuey, Miami
OF – Allison Curtis, Central Michigan
P – Savannah Jo Dorsey, Ohio
P – Allyson Kus, Western Michigan
UTL – Savanna Norcio, Buffalo
UTL/P – Ronnie Ladines, Kent State
2B – Melissa Palmer, Western Michigan (At-Large)
SS – Sabrina Gamboa, Western Michigan (At-Large)
P – Amber Logemann, Miami (At-Large)
All-MAC Second Team
C – Maison Kalina, Central Michigan
1B – Johniann Wahl, MiamiwB – Taylor Saxton, Ohio
3B – Kelsea Cichocki, Western Michigan
SS – Holly Speers, Kent State
OF – Jessica Lemieux, Toledo
OF – Caitlyn Warren, Northern Illinois
OF – Jamie Wren, Ohio
P – Erin Seiler, Akron
P – Alex Frenz, Northern Illinois
UTL – Morgan Geno, Ohio
UTL/P – Danielle Stiene, Ohio
C – Alyssa Nicholas, Akron (At-Large)
C – Aoife Duffy, Eastern Michigan (At-Large)
SS – Kali Kossakowski, Northern Illinois (At-Large)
SS – CarolAnn Sexauer, Central Michigan (At-Large)
UTL – Lauren Anderson, Miami (At-Large)
All-Freshman Team
Amanda Akles, Eastern Michigan, 3B
Allison Curtis, Central Michigan, OF
Alex Frenz, Northern Illinois, P
Morgan Geno, Ohio, UTL
Madison Lee, Ball State, UTL
Lilli Piper, Akron, UTL
Michaela Schlattman, Miami, SS
Johniann Wahl, Miami, 1B
Katie Weimer, Buffalo, C
Jamie Wren, Ohio, OF
