USA Softball has announced the top ten finalists for the 2019 National Player of the Year award.
Narrowed down from an initial list of twenty-six finalists, the top ten consists of four pitchers, one catcher, four pitchers, and a true infield/outfield utility player. Nine schools are represented in the list of finalists, with Oklahoma the only program placing multiple players on the list in Giselle Juarez and Sydney Romero.
Three Power Five conference Players of the Year were among the ten finalists. Kentucky’s Abbey Cheek (SEC), Wisconsin’s Kayla Konwent (Big Ten), and Oklahoma’s Romero (Big 12) were each named finalists for the award. The PAC-12 has not named their postseason award winners, though top-10 finalist Rachel Garcia of UCLA is the favorite for the POTY award in that conference.
The SEC placed four conference stars on the list, the only conference with multiple finalists other than the Big 12, with Oklahoma’s two. In addition to Cheek, SEC stars Mia Davidson (Mississippi State), Alyssa DiCarlo (Georgia), and Amanda Lorenz (Florida) were named finalists for the award.
James Madison pitcher Megan Good was named a finalist just one year removed from an injury that cost her the 2018 campaign. The Dukes’ redshirt senior is batting .336 on the year, with fifteen home runs and a team-leading fifty-seven RBIs. She has been walked forty-three times this season. Arguably the nation’s top dual-threat player, Good also boasts a 1.49 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP on the year, with 172 strikeouts in 150.1 innings.
Nicole Newman of Drake rounded out the list of finalists, earning the nomination after being named the Missouri Valley Conference’s Pitcher of the Year for the third time in her career. A redshirt senior, Newman owns a 26-6 overall record, with a 0.91 ERA and 362 strikeouts on the season; the latter mark leads the nation. The MVC’s all-time leader for pitching strikeouts, Newman has thrown six no-hitters on the season, including four perfect games.
FULL LIST OF FINALISTS:
Abbey Cheek, infield/senior, Kentucky
Mia Davidson, catcher/sophomore, Mississippi State
Alyssa DiCarlo, infield/senior, Georgia
Rachel Garcia, pitcher-utility/junior, UCLA
Megan Good, pitcher-utility/senior, James Madison
Giselle Juarez, pitcher/junior, Oklahoma
Kayla Konwent, infield/junior, Wisconsin
Amanda Lorenz, utility/senior, Florida
Nicole Newman, pitcher/senior, Drake
Sydney Romero, infield/senior, Oklahoma
