Softball | 5/13/2024 9:55:53 AM
The St. John Fisher University duo of juniors Maddie Donlin and Cassidy Ormond were named Player and Pitcher of the Year honors, respectively, as the Empire 8 Conference announced its 2024 Softball All-Conference awards on Monday, May 13. The awards are voted on by the league's head coaches.
Alfred senior Mya Wells was named the Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year, while first-year standout Jennifer Rodriguez of Utica University earned Rookie of the Year honors. St. John Fisher head coach Bari Mance and her staff was named E8 Coaching Staff of the Year.
Donlin has enjoyed a tremendous season for the Cardinals, who won their second straight Empire 8 Tournament and enter the NCAA Tournament with a 34-5 record in 2024. She is batting .419 on the season with a .985 OPS, 34 runs scored and 26 RBI in 38 games played. She has at least one hit in 31 of 38 games played and hit .478 with a 1.156 OPS and 19 RBI in 14 E8 contests. Donlin is the seventh St. John Fisher student-athlete to earn E8 Softball Player of the Year honors.
Ormond became the fifth different St. John Fisher player in program history to earn Pitcher of the Year honors. She enters the NCAA Tournament with a 17-2 overall record, 1.73 earned run average and 0.95 WHIP. Ormond was a perfect 7-0 in league play with a 0.62 earned run average, five complete games and 40 strikeouts in 34 innings. Ormond has allowed one run or less in 15 starts this season, has seven shutouts and recorded a pair of no-hitters against RIT on March 27 and Houghton on April 26.
Wells, a senior, recorded a .995 fielding percentage in 209 total chances at first base in 2024, with just one error committed on the season. She was perfect in league play, spanning 74 total chances. Wells also excelled at the plate, batting .432 with 45 runs scored, 30 extra base hits (19 doubles, three triples and eight home runs) and a league-best 46 RBI. She also stole 17 bases in 2024 and has 51 doubles, 22 home runs and 158 RBI, while hitting .386 in 164 career games.
Rodriguez enjoyed excellent debut season for Utica, batting .519 with a 1.299 OPS to go along with 16 extra base hits, including 11 doubles, four home runs and 33 runs batted in. Rodriguez, who saw time at shortstop, second base, first base and designated player during the season, had at least one hit in 27 games this season, including a 16-game hitting streak from March 10-April 17. In addition, she hit two grand slams and drove in nine runs against SUNY Morrisville on March 29. Rodriguez is the third Utica student-athlete to earn E8 Rookie of the Year honors, joining Kristie Jones (2011) and Alyssa Russell (2013).
Mance, assistant coach Renee Smith and pitching coach Emily Trotman led St. John Fisher to a perfect 14-0 mark in league play and its second straight Empire 8 Championship in 2024. The Cardinals enter the NCAA Tournament with a 34-5 record. A pair of St. John Fisher student-athletes won Empire 8 Individual awards, while 11 players garnered All-E8 accolades. It is the third E8 Coaching Staff of the Year honor for the Cardinals under Mance and fifth in program history.
Four different teams had at least one first team selection. St. John Fisher led all institutions with six first team selections, while Alfred had four selections. Utica University had a pair of first team picks, while Keuka College enjoyed one first team selection. Overall, the Cardinals had 11 all-conference selections, while eight Utica student-athletes and seven from Alfred were honored. Alfred standout Mya Wells, Mari Spitz from St. John Fisher and Utica’s Emily Joss earned All-E8 first team honors for the third time.
One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2024 Empire 8 Softball Sportswoman of the Year Team. The Empire 8 Conference emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
2024 Empire 8 Softball All-Conference Selections
Player of the Year: Maddie Donlin, Jr., OF, St. John Fisher
Pitcher of the Year: Cassidy Ormond, Jr., P, St. John Fisher
Defensive Player of the Year: Mya Wells, 1B, Alfred
Rookie of the Year: Jennifer Rodriguez, Fr., U, Utica
Coaching Staff of the Year: St. John Fisher, led by head coach Bari Mance
Empire 8 First Team
Catcher – Mari Spitz, Jr., C, St. John Fisher (Honeoye Falls, NY/Honeoye Falls-Lima)
First Base – Mya Wells, Sr., 1B, Alfred (San Ramon, CA/California)
Second Base – Madi Rose, So., 2B, St. John Fisher (Averill Park, NY/Averill Park)
Shortstop – Amalia DeMartino, Jr., SS, St. John Fisher (Durham, CT/Coginchaug Regional)
Third Base – Abigail Gatza, Sr., 3B, Alfred (Burlington, Ontario/Assumption Catholic)
Outfield – Meghan Neto, Jr., OF, Alfred (Miami, FL/Doral Academy Charter)
Outfield – Maddie Donlin, Jr., OF, St. John Fisher (Vestal, NY/Vestal)
Outfield – Emily McManus, Fr., OF, St. John Fisher (Rochester, NY/Gates-Chili)
Outfield – Emily Joss, Gr., OF, Utica (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls)
Utility – Jennifer Rodriguez, Fr., U, Utica (Sylmar, CA/John F. Kennedy)
Designated Player – Emily VanDelinder, Sr., DP, Keuka (Corning, NY/Corning)
Pitcher – Megan Bennett, Sr., P, Alfred (Athens, PA/Athens Area)
Pitcher – Cassidy Ormond, Jr., P, St. John Fisher (Cicero, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse)
Empire 8 Second Team
Catcher – Rachel Little, Fr., C, Utica (Burbank, CA/John Burroughs)
First Base – Taylor Shackleton, Fr., 1B, St. John Fisher (Placentia, CA/El Doracdo)
Second Base – Annalise Tyler, Fr., 2B, Russell Sage (Schenectady, NY/Schenectady)
Shortstop – Hailey Jasinski, Fr., SS, Keuka (Buffalo, NY/North Collins)
Third Base – Kelly Cournoyer, Sr., 3B, St. John Fisher (Dudley, MA/Shepherd Hill Regional)
Outfield – Maddy Spakoski, So., OF, Nazareth (Webster, NY/Webster Schroeder)
Outfield – Maddie Zulager So., OF, Utica (Moorpark, CA/Moorpark)
Utility – Olivia Flynn, So., U, Keuka (Williamson, NY/Williamson)
Designated Player – Paris Guzman, Fr., DP, Alfred (Santa Fe Springs, CA/Santa Fe)
Pitcher – Leah Madore, So., P, Russell Sage (Williamsville, VT/Brattleboro Union)
Pitcher – Ainsley Evanetski, Jr., P, St. John Fisher (Rochester, NY/Brighton)
Empire 8 Third Team
Catcher – Morgan Russo, Fr., C, Nazareth (Ilion, NY/Central Valley Academy)
First Base – Katie Distefano, Sr., 1B, Elmira (Wall Township, NJ/Wall)
Second Base – Lauren Paul, Jr., 2B, Utica (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland)
Shortstop – Carlee Miller, Sr., SS, Houghton (Fillmore, NY/Fillmore)
Shortstop – Frankie Luster, Fr., SS, Utica (Granada Hills, CA/Granada Hills Charter)
Third Base – Danielle Nelson, So., 3B, Houghton (Smethport, PA/Smethport Area)
Third Base – Alyssa Barbato, Jr., 3B, Utica (Rhinebeck, NY/Rhinebeck)
Outfield – Jessica Remm, So., OF, Alfred (Carmel, IN/Carmel)
Outfield – Samantha Vidal, Fr., OF, Alfred (Flake Worth, FL/Forest Hill)
Outfield – Brianna Ramstine, Jr., OF, Elmira (Chenango Forks, NY/Chenango Forks)
Outfield – Madalyn Ring, Jr., OF, Russell Sage (Gansevoort, NY/South Glens Falls)
Outfield – Cassidy Evanetski, Jr., OF, St. John Fisher (Rochester, NY/Brighton)
Utility – CC Holmes, Fr., P/U, St. John Fisher (Utica, NY/New Hartford)
Designated Player – Jocelyn Jean, Fr., DP, Elmira (Montoursville, PA/Montoursville)
Pitcher – Jordyn Conte, Gr., P, Utica (Newport, NY/West Canada Valley)
Pitcher – Kylie Murray, Jr., P, Utica (Eastchester, NY/Eastchester)
Empire 8 Sportswoman of the Year
Mikaela Perez, Sr., P, Alfred (Pomona, CA/Diamond Ranch)
Justice Green, Sr., U, Elmira (Starksboro, VT/Mount Abraham Union)
Jennifer Page, Sr., OF, Houghton (Seneca Falls, NY/Mynderse Academy)
Emily VanDelinder, Sr., DP, Keuka (Corning, NY/Corning)
Morgan Russo, Fr., C, Nazareth (Ilion, NY/Central Valley Academy)
Zoe Moroughan, Fr., P, Russell Sage (Adams, NY/South Jefferson)
Maddie Herdlein, Jr., P, St. John Fisher (Amherst, NY/Amherst)
Kelly Thornton, Jr., U, Utica (Stanhope, NJ/Lenape Valley Regional)
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com and
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