Haeger, Ocasio, Stewart Earn All-America Honors
Wednesday, May 27, 2015 | Softball
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – University of Florida softball players Lauren Haeger (First Team), Kelsey Stewart (First Team) and Aleshia Ocasio (Third Team) represent the Gators on the 2015 NFCA All-America teams, announced Wednesday by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.
A day after she won the USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year award, Haeger achieved All-America status for the second time in her career (First Team, 2013). Ocasio becomes Florida's first freshman All-American since Gator Great Hannah Rogers earned Second Team recognition in 2011, while Stewart garnered her second consecutive All-America selection (First Team, 2014) to go along with her 2015 SEC Player of the Year accolade.
Florida now has had 29 All-America honors by 14 players during Walton's 10 seasons and 30 All-America accolades in school history. In addition, the Gators have had multiple All-Americans each year since 2007.
Below is a glimpse at the season and career highlights for each of Florida's 2015 All-Americans:
Lauren Haeger
NFCA First Team All-American
*2015 SEC Pitcher of the Year
*Holds a 28-1 record after beginning the season with 24 consecutive victories to mark the best start to a campaign in Gator history
*Earned the win in Game 1 of each of Florida's eight SEC series
*Holds the SEC record for career home runs (67) and the Florida benchmark for career RBI (253)
*Carries a 69-11 career pitching record, becoming the first player in NCAA history to hit 60 or more home runs and earn 60 or more wins in a career
*Named SEC Pitcher of the Week three times (Weeks 2, 9 and 11)
Kelsey Stewart
NFCA First Team All-American
*Holds the Florida career records for hits (287), batting average (.420), triples (26) and stolen bases (95)
*Stands among national leaders this season in triples (second, 10), hitting (18th, .448) and runs per game (22nd, 1.11)
*In league play, led the SEC with a .536 average that was 78 points ahead of the No. 2 hitter
*Had 45 hits against conference opponents – 12 more than any other player
Aleshia Ocasio
NFCA Third Team All-American
*Florida's third freshman All-American in school history (Aja Paculba, 2008; Rogers, 2011)
*Ranks among the SEC's best in ERA (eighth, 1.99), opposing batting average (seventh, .199), strikeouts (11th, 152), wins (T-12th, 17), saves (T-11th, two)
*Stands among UF's all-time freshman leaders in ERA (seventh), wins (third), strikeouts (third), complete games (T-6th 10), shutouts (T-6th, four) and saves (T-5th, two)
| 2015 NFCA Division I All-American Teams | ||
| First Team | ||
| Pos. | Player | School |
| P | Cheridan Hawkins | Oregon |
| P | Miranda Kramer | Western Kentucky |
| P | Shelby Turnier | UCF |
| C | Lexie Elkins | Louisiana-Lafayette |
| 1B | Lauren Chamberlain | Oklahoma |
| 2B | Emily Carosone | Auburn |
| 3B | Kasey Cooper | Auburn |
| SS | Bianka Bell | LSU |
| OF | Haylie McCleney | Alabama |
| OF | Allexis Bennett | UCLA |
| OF | Kelly Christner | Michigan |
| UT/P | Lauren Haeger | Florida |
| DP or UT/Non-Pitcher | Amber Freeman | Arizona State |
| At-Large/2B | Sierra Romero | Michigan |
| At-Large/2B | Kelsey Stewart | Florida |
| At-Large/UT/P | Ally Carda | UCLA |
| At-Large/SS | Shelby Pendley | Oklahoma |
| At-Large/OF | Alaynie Page | South Carolina |
| Second Team | ||
| Pos. | Player | School |
| P | Paige Parker | Oklahoma |
| P | Megan Good | James Madison |
| P | Alexis Osorio | Alabama |
| C | Ivie Drake | Georgia State |
| 1B | Kayla Bonstrom | Stanford |
| 2B | Alex Hugo | Georgia |
| 3B | Jenna Lilley | Oregon |
| SS | Delaney Spaulding | UCLA |
| OF | Bailey Landry | LSU |
| OF | Cheyenne Cordes | California |
| OF | Janie Takeda | Oregon |
| UT/P | Sara Groenewegen | Minnesota |
| DP or UT/Non-Pitcher | Sahvanna Jaquish | LSU |
| At-Large/P | Megan Betsa | Michigan |
| At-Large/UT/P | Rainey Gaffin | Tennessee |
| At-Large/OF | Shellie Landry | Louisiana-Lafayette |
| At-Large/C | Chelsea Goodacre | Arizona |
| At-Large/DP or UT/Non-Pitcher | Stephany LaRosa | UCLA |
| Third Team | ||
| Pos. | Player | School |
| P | Carley Hoover | LSU |
| P | Lacey Waldrop | Florida State |
| P | Allie Walljasper | LSU |
| C | Erika Piancastelli | McNeese State |
| 1B | Shelby Friudenberg | Baylor |
| 2B | Demi Turner | Alabama |
| 3B | Marisa Runyon | Alabama |
| SS | Kellie Fox | Arizona |
| OF | Tiffany Howard | Auburn |
| OF | Sierra Lawrence | Michigan |
| OF | Katiyana Mauga | Arizona |
| UT/P | Jailyn Ford | James Madison |
| DP or UT/Non-Pitcher | Cortni Emanuel | Georgia |
| At-Large/OF | Emilee Koerner | Notre Dame |
| At-Large/P | Haylie Wagner | Michigan |
| At-Large/SS | Kristen Brown | North Carolina |
| At-Large/3B | Missy Taukeiaho | Cal State Fullerton |
| At-Large/P | Aleshia Ocasio | Florida |
| At-Large/OF | Kiki Stokes | Nebraska |
WALTON'S WORDS
On having three Gators as All-Americans:
“I'm very thankful for those awards. It just like being a dad and [having] your kids do something special. It's the same thing when you're the head coach and your kids become All-Americans. It's a special, proud moment for me and our coaching staff.”
On Haeger and Stewart earning All-America recognition for the second time:
“They're very talented players. What they've been able to do in their careers for us has been tremendous. They're so valuable and so important to our program. Them being All-Americans is just an extension of how good our team is and how good of teammates they have around them.”
On Ocasio's achievement and future potential:
“Aleshia Ocasio came to me and wanted to be a Florida Gator. She [also] wanted to have an opportunity to play in the Women's College World Series and have a chance to be an All-American. She's checked both those things off in her first year playing for us. I'm really proud of her work ethic and what she has been able to sustain throughout this whole season.”
—Florida Head Coach Tim Walton
UP NEXT
The 2014 NCAA champion and 2015 Southeastern Conference champion Gators will open the Women's College World Series on Thursday with a noon ET game against Tennessee at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium. The contest will air live on ESPN, while Florida Sports Talk will have the radio broadcast. Complete information about Florida's trip to the WCWS can be found on the Women's College World Series Central page on GatorZone.com.
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