Cottey College Softball Team Shines with Multiple Season Honors

Columbia, Mo. – The Cottey College softball program, co-champions of the regular season, received multiple regular season awards from the American Midwest Conference (AMC). Lauren Johnson, a senior, was selected as the AMC Player of the Year. Lacey Cruz, also a senior, was named co-Pitcher of the year, and first-year head coach Jamie Taylor was voted the Coach of the Year. In addition, five Comets were named First Team All-Conference, one athlete was named Second Team All-Conference, one to the Champions of Character Team, and twenty-one student-athletes were named Academic All-Conference.

“We are extremely honored to receive this recognition from the American Midwest Conference,” said Head Coach Jamie Taylor. “It’s a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team, both on and off the field. We are excited to continue building on our successes and enter postseason play.”

AMC Softball Season Award Winners:

• Player of the Year: Lauren Johnson, Cottey
• co-Pitcher of the Year: Lacey Cruz, Cottey
• Coach of the Year: Jamie Taylor, Cottey

All-Conference & Season Award Highlights:

All stats and records are prior to the AMC Softball Postseason Tournament

• Lauren Johnson (Cottey) earned the AMC Player of the Year title by batting .417 on the year with 10 home runs and 65 RBIs. She struck out just 13 times in 151 at-bats.
• Lacey Cruz (Cottey) received co-Pitcher of the Year honors after going 17-6 in the circle with 11 complete-games and a 2.12 ERA. She also recorded 186 strikeouts in 139.0 innings pitched.
• Coach of the Year honors went to Jamie Taylor after she led Cottey to the AMC Regular Season co-Championship in their first season in the conference.

First Team All-Conference
Lacey Cruz
Amelia Gassman
Lauren Johnson
Aryana Palencia
Jenna Wilson

Second Team All-Conference
Alyssa Montoya

Champions of Character Team
Jenna Wilson

Academic All-Conference
Aariana Castillo
Aryana Palencia
Braylen Ford
Brooke Vicory
Elizabeth Brown
Elizabeth Thomas
Halen Hoelzeman
Hunter Beard
Jenna Wilson
Karina Ramirez
Kristen Hurst
Lacey Cruz
Lauren Johnson,
Lorena Arrellano
Madison Hyder
Meghan Bendik
Melina Bueno
Mickelly Soyez
Rachael Young
Skylar Chappell
Virginia Nordin

How the Awards are Selected:

• Coaches nominated up to five field players and three pitchers.
• Coaches from the 11 AMC institutions vote for 20 field players and 10 pitchers.
• The coaches then select the first team (20) and second team (20) on a call, mixing the players and pitchers based on point totals.
• Player of the Year is the top vote getter in the field players vote, while Pitcher of the Year is the top pitcher vote getter.
• Newcomer of the Year and Freshman of the Year is nominated on and voted on in a separate ballot.
• A player cannot be nominated as both a field player and pitcher.

Academic All-Conference:

• To be eligible for Academic All-Conference honors, student-athletes must be in their second semester at their AMC institution, have at least a 3.0 GPA and finish the year on the team.
• Fall sport freshman are not eligible for the award in their first season.

Champions of Character:

• Each coach selects one player from their own team.
• The nominee is a player the exemplifies the NAIA Five Core Values of Respect, Responsibility, Sportsmanship, Integrity and Servant Leadership.