Delanie Gourley is the third-best ERA in the country.
Pair of Gators Named USA Softball Player of the Year Top 25 Finalists
Wednesday, April 13, 2016 | Softball
Delanie Gourley and sophomore Aleshia Ocasio were named to the Top 25 ”Watch List” for the 2016 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year.
OKLAHOMA CITY – University of Florida junior Delanie Gourley and sophomore Aleshia Ocasio were named Top 25 Finalists for the 2016 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, announced Wednesday by the Amateur Softball Association of America.
Now in its 15th year, the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, awarded by the National Governing Body for Softball in the United States, recognizes outstanding athletic achievement by Division I female collegiate softball players across the country.
The mid-season "Watch List" includes nine seniors, 11 juniors and five sophomores. The student-athletes selected represent 20 NCAA Division I universities and nine athletic conferences. Alabama, Florida, Florida State, James Madison and Michigan each have two players represented and Auburn, Florida Atlantic, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, Marshall, McNeese State, Minnesota, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, UCLA and Washington each have one member among the Top 25 Finalists.
A season ago, Lauren Haeger became the first Gator to receive the award, which is considered the most prestigious honor in Division I women's softball. Haeger was one of three finalists in addition to Oregon's Cheridan Hawkins and Michigan's Sierra Romero.
Meet the Gators
Aleshia Ocasio
Ocasio, who is Florida's third freshman pitcher to gather All-America honors in school history (Aja Paculba, 2008; Hannah Rogers, 2011), has continued to improve and is having a record-breaking sophomore season.
Statistically, Ocasio is 13-1 this season with a school-record tying five seasons. In 94.0 innings pitched this season, the St. Cloud Fla. native has notched an NCAA leading 0.45 ERA to go along with 97 strikeouts and 17 walks while holding opposing hitters to just a .185 batting average.
Ocasio's astounding 0.45 ERA (94.0 IP) would go down as the best ERA for a single season in Florida history if the season ended today. Stacey Nelson currently holds the top two single season ERAs in program history, as she recorded a 0.61 ERA (285.1 IP) in 2009 and 0.75 (352.2 IP) in 2008.
A few weeks ago after earning two wins and one save in 10 shutout innings at LSU, Ocasio garnered SEC Pitcher of the Week honors, marking her second-career SEC weekly award of her career.
Against Jacksonville on Feb. 17, she recorded the 16th no hitter in Florida history and the first since her teammate Delanie Gourley threw one in the 2014 NCAA Regional against Florida A&M (May, 16). A hit batter in the first and a walk in the fourth were the only base runners allowed. Her no-no was the first in a home opener in program history
Following her no hitter, rookie Kelly Barnhill one-hit JU in a complete game effort. Ocasio and Barnhill became the first set of Florida teammates to throw a no hitter and one hitter back-to-back since Stacey Nelson and Stephanie Brombacher accomplished the feat on Feb. 13, 2009, against Texas Tech and Coastal Carolina.
Delanie Gourley
Gourley, who became the first left-handed pitcher to sign with the Gators under Tim Walton, is 11-2 this season with three saves. In 89.1 innings pitched this season, the Lakeside, Calif. native has notched the third-lowest ERA in the NCAA, 0.78, to go along with a career-high 122 strikeouts and 30 walks while holding opposing hitters to just a .147 batting average.
Her astounding 0.78 ERA (89.1 IP) would go down as tied for third-best ERA for a single season in Florida with Jenny Gladding (2004) history if the season ended today. In addition, the left-hander's opponent's batting average against her is an astounding .147, as she is challenging Gladding for her school-record mark of .146 that she achieved in 2004 as well.
Gourley, who's thrown four one-hitters this season, threw the second no hitter of her career and UF's season against South Dakota On March 9. It was her first-career no-no during her freshman season on May 16, 2014, against FAMU. She's now the fifth pitcher in UF history to accomplish this feat twice. She joined Hannah Rogers, Stacey Nelson, Renise Landry and Beth Dieter.
Gourley also combined with freshman Kelly Barnhill for a Florida single-game record 18 strikeouts against FAMU on March 6. Gourley recorded a career-high 13 strikeouts in 5.1 innings pitched, and Barnhill dealt five strikeouts to the only five Rattlers she faced. They eclipsed UF's previous record of 17 strikeouts.
2016 Season
Florida entered this week with the highest win percentage (.927) in the country and is in first place in the SEC with a 12-3 record. UF has an overall scoring margin of 245-41, including 20 shutouts and 14 mercy-rule victories.
Future Announcements
USA Softball will announce the Top 10 Finalists on May 11 and the Top 3 announced May 25. The 2015 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be revealed May 31.
FOLLOW THE GATORS
In the Polls: NFCA | USA Softball
Head Coach Tim Walton on Twitter
Players Mentioned
NCAA: Coach Walton, Erickson and Cahalan Postgame Press Conference 5-24-26
Sunday, May 24
NCAA: Coach Walton, Walker, Wesolowski and Erickson Postgame Press Conference 5-23-26
Saturday, May 23
NCAA: Coach Walton and Ava Brown Postgame Press Conference 5-22-26
Friday, May 22
NCAA: Kendall Grover and Cassidy McLellan Press Conference 5-21-26
Thursday, May 21
