Bluffton’s Miller and Rose-Hulman’s Goslee Win Top HCAC Softball Awards
May 7, 2008
GREENWOOD , IN – Bluffton University’s Lindsey Miller (Wapakoneta, Ohio/H.S.) and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology’s Jordan Goslee (St. Joseph, Mich./H.S.) have been named Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Most Valuable Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively.
Miller, a junior shortstop for the Beavers, guided her team to a share of the 2008 HCAC softball regular season title this season. She was a key to the Bluffton offensive attack and hit a league-high .515 in conference play. Miller led the HCAC in batting average (.515), on-base percentage (.553), slugging percentage (.970), home runs (4), and ranked second in RBI (14). For the season, she hit .462 with 31 runs, 45 RBI, eight doubles, and 11 home runs.
Miller was named HCAC Softball Hitter of the Week three times in 2008. Bluffton finished the season 25-17 overall and finished the HCAC regular season with a 13-3 record.
Goslee, a sophomore pitcher for the Engineers, was outstanding in the circle this year. She helped lead the Engineers to a share of the HCAC regular season title and the right to host the conference’s tournament. She posted an 8-0 record against conference opponents this season. The sophomore recorded a 0.65 earned run average by allowing just five earned runs in 54.0 innings of work. Goslee struck out 77 opponents and had just nine walks.
Overall for Rose-Hulman this year, Goslee sported a 1.05 earned run average and 12-2 overall record. She threw 107.0 innings and struck out a school-record 148 hitters while walking 23. She was named HCAC Softball Pitcher of the Week three times this year and helped the Engineers to a 25-12 overall record and 13-3 mark in HCAC play.
The HCAC has also awarded the Freshman of the Year award. Defiance College’s Marah Robinson (New Philadelphia, Ohio/H.S.) was named the recipient after leading the Jackets to the 2008 HCAC Tournament Championship. Robinson hit .277 with nine RBI and two home runs during HCAC competition this spring. The freshman led the Jackets this season with a .372 average at the dish and also added 30 runs, six doubles, seven home runs, and 25 RBI.
Bluffton’s head coach, Heather Bruder, has been named Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. Bruder, in her second season as head coach at Bluffton, led the Beavers to a 25-17 mark and a 13-3 record in the HCAC this season, sharing the regular season championship with Rose-Hulman. This award is the first ‘Coach of the Year’ honor for Bruder while in charge at Bluffton.
Miller, Goslee, and Robinson headline the All-HCAC team. The 2008 All-HCAC Team is composed of 19 players. Included on the team is Anderson’s Erin Garrity (So., Fortville, Ind./Mt. Vernon), Gretchen Louzon (So., Beech Grove, Ind./H.S.), Kelly Thompson (Sr., Anderson, Ind./H.S.), and Chelsea Haines (So., Knightstown, Ind./H.S.), Bluffton’s Jayme Marbaugh (So., Ohio City, Ohio/Parkway), Brooke Babcock (So., Findlay, Ohio/H.S.), and Mollie Brown (Fr., Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern), Defiance College’s Mallory Faling (Fr., Clark Lake, Mich./Columbia Central) and Justin Johnston (Jr., Wauseon, Ohio/H.S.), Franklin College’s Marlene Russo (Jr., Clayton, Ind./Cascade), Manchester College’s Lisa Heaton (Sr., Ellettsville, Ind./Edgewood), College of Mount St. Joseph’s Megan McCullough (Fr., Middletown, Ohio/H.S.) and Katie Cammerer (Sr., Cincinnati, Ohio/Mercy), Rose-Hulman’s Ashley Montgomery (Sr., Plainfield, Ind./H.S.), Katie Frey (Sr., Cedar Grove, Ind./Franklin Co.), Brittany Bernthold (So., Fisherville, Ky./Eastern), and Kyla Lutz (Fr., Tennyson, Ind./Boonville), and Transylvania’s Jessica Broadhead (Jr., Boonville, Ind./H.S.) and Kendra DeArk (Fr., Jeffersonville, Ind./H.S.).