Carmel, Ind. – The Transylvania softball team fielded three major conference award winners for the 2021 season as senior pitcher Cece Wittry was selected as the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year by the conference on Tuesday.
Freshman Stella Wulker was selected as the conference's Newcomer of the Year and Transylvania softball head coach Shawn Hendrickson was named the HCAC Coach of the Year for the 2021 season.
The three Pioneer softball program members highlighted a populous list of all-conference awardees hailing from Transylvania, which produced a 14-2 record in conference regular season play to clinch a share of the HCAC regular season crown.
Along with Wittry, senior Kameron Bowling (Louisville, Ky. / Holy Cross HS), junior Annie Schuck (Selma, Indiana / Wapahani HS), and junior Taylor Senter (Scottsville, Kentucky / Allen County HS), were selected to the All-HCAC First Team.
Seniors Lexi Childers (Herrin, Ill. / Herrin HS) and Allyson O'Dell (Charleston, Ill. / Charleston HS), sophomore Abby Frazier (Lascassas, Tenn. / Central Magnet), and Wulker were all named to the All-HCAC Second Team. Junior Alyssa Nunn rounded out Transylvania's postseason award winners with an All-HCAC Honorable Mention selection.
Starting primarily as an infielder for her first three seasons, Wittry, a senior from Georgetown, Kentucky (Scott County HS), fully unleashed her versatility as both a second baseman and a pitcher this season for the Pioneers, making 17 appearances in the circle and 11 starts.
Wittry produced a 2.18 earned-run average this season, ranking second in the HCAC and the best among Pioneer pitchers. The senior had an 11-2 record in the circle with 37 strikeouts to 13 walks, and 19 earned runs allowed.
In conference games, Wittry ranked first in conference in earned-run average with a 0.79 ERA and had an 8-0 win-loss record versus HCAC opponents. In conference play, the senior registered a .205 opposing batting average, ranking third in the HCAC. In conference games, Wittry had the fewest amount of runs allowed and earned runs allowed, and was second in both hits and doubles allowed.
Wittry was equally as versatile offensively, ranking second in conference play in on-base percentage (.558), eighth in conference in batting average (.465), fourth in runs scored, second in walks, and seventh in stolen bases.
Wulker, a freshman from Cincinnati, Ohio (Anderson HS), was an instant contributor to the Pioneers, tallying 21 hits on the season with four doubles and 12 runs batted in. Wulker had a .400 on-base percentage, the fifth-highest of any Pioneer who appeared in 30 or more games this season and batted .333. The outfielder drew five walks and scored 10 runs, and also made three appearances in the circle this season for the Pioneers.
In his seventh year at the helm of the Transylvania softball program, Hendrickson guided Transylvania to a 28-10 overall record and its fourth regular season crown in the last five full seasons as the Pioneers went 14-2 in conference regular season play. Under Hendrickson's guidance, Transylvania rose to as high as a No. 10 national ranking this season and defeated No. 4 Christopher Newport this season. The Pioneers posted a season-high 14-game win streak to close out the regular season and begin the HCAC Tournament. During conference play, Hendrickson's Pioneers outscored opponents, 111-23. This is the second time Hendrickson has been named the HCAC Coach of the Year in his career.
Bowling wrapped up an illustrious career with the Pioneers by leading the HCAC in strikeouts, ringing up 160 batters on the year. The senior led the conference in innings pitched (132.2 IP) and had the fifth-lowest earned-run average among HCAC pitchers with a 2.59 ERA. The senior posted a 15-7 record in the circle and posted the second-best opposing batters average over the entire season (.213). Bowling posted eight complete-game wins during the season.
Schuck ranked sixth in conference and second on the Pioneers in hits (48), second in the HCAC in both RBI (39) and walks (15), fifth in on-base percentage (.496), and sixth in hits (48), slugging percentage (.645) and batting average (.436). The junior registered 10 doubles, three home runs, and three triples this season, including 13 games with two or more hits.
Senter led the conference in doubles with 22 on the season and ranked second in the HCAC in both on-base percentage (.508) and runs scored (37). The outfielder led Transylvania and ranked third in the HCAC in both batting average (.440) and slugging percentage (.789).
Visit HeartlandConf.org for the full list of award winners
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