PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The American Athletic Conference announced its 2018 softball award winners on the eve of the league’s championship on Wednesday, as voted upon by the conference’s eight head coaches.
 
Wichita State senior Mackenzie Wright was tabbed as the Player of the Year, with USF freshman Georgina Corrick earning Pitcher of the Year and Rookie of the Year accolades. Houston’s Savannah Heebner additionally gathered Pitcher of the Year honors, and Tulsa catcher Rylie Spell earned the inaugural Defensive Player of the Year nod. USF, led by head coach Ken Eriksen, was named the 2018 Coaching Staff of the Year after claiming the outright regular season title.
 
Recognized with the Team Academic Excellence Award is the University of Houston, with the Cougars posting a collective 3.42 grade point average. The Cougars earn the accolade for the second-consecutive season and third time since the inception of The American.
 
In the Shockers’ first season competing in The American, Wright sparked her team at the plate throughout the conference circuit. She batted a league-best .455 average in 21 American contests, driving in 13 RBIs. As part of her conference-high 30 hits, the senior notched four doubles and four home runs. Wright amassed a .697 slugging percentage and .543 on-base percentage offensively, all while generating a .936 fielding percentage at third base. A two-time Player of the Week during the season, she strung together a 10-for-14 week April 16-22 as Wichita State went 4-0, claiming a win over No. 19 Oklahoma State and a series sweep of UCF.
 
Corrick’s freshman campaign in the circle anchored USF to The American regular season title, posting a 1.53 ERA in conference games. She started 13 of her 17 appearances in the league, earning a 9-3 record while holding opposing batters to a .204 batting average. Corrick struck out 70 batters in 87 innings of work in conference games, totaling 152 strikeouts in 32 total appearances this season. Earlier in the spring, the freshman was named as one of 25 candidates nationally for the Schutt Sports/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year.
 
Heebner repeats as a First Team All-Conference honoree in 2018, and adds Pitcher of the Year to her resume this season. The junior ace led Houston and The American in ERA for the entirety of the spring, currently owning a 1.07 ERA to rank 12^th nationally. In 16 American appearances, Heebner led all league pitchers with a 1.39 ERA and yielding batters to a .228 average, fanning 62 in 90.1 innings. Additionally, she raked in the batting numbers, owning a .330 average at the plate with 30 hits and six RBIs.
 
Tulsa catcher Spell gathered the conference’s inaugural Defensive Player of the Year honor after backstopping the Golden Hurricane in all 21 conference games. On the entirety of the season, Spell boasts a .997 fielding percentage and just one error, including an error-free slate in league games. The junior has gunned down an American-best 18 runners attempting to steal on the season, including 9 in league games.
 
Ken Eriksen and his staff led their charges to the 2018 American Softball regular season title and the top seed for the conference championship, posting a 36-20 record and 14-7 slate in conference. As a unit, the Bulls rank second in the league with a .294 team batting average and third with a 2.53 team ERA. USF led all teams with four honorees to the 2018 All-Conference First Team, including Corrick, Amber Atkinson, Lindsey Devitt and Astin Donovan.
 
For live updates on this weekend’s American Softball Championship, visit TheAmerican.org/Softball and follow @American_SBall on Twitter.
 
 
2018 American Athletic Conference Softball Award Winners
 
Player of the Year
Mackenzie Wright, Wichita State
 
Pitchers of the Year
Savannah Heebner, Houston
Georgina Corrick, USF
 
Defensive Player of the Year
Rylie Spell, Tulsa
 
Rookie of the Year
Georgina Corrick, USF
 
Coaching Staff of the Year
USF
 
Team Academic Excellence Award
Houston
 
All-Conference First Team
P – Savannah Heebner, Houston
P – Georgina Corrick, USF
C – Cassady Brewer, UCF
1B – Lauren Evans, USF
2B – Lindsey Devitt, USF
3B – Mackenzie Wright, Wichita State
SS – Laurie Derrico, Wichita State
OF – Denali Schappacher, UCF
OF – Astin Donovan, USF
OF – Julia Hollingsworth, Tulsa
DP/UTL (Pitcher) – Bailey Lange, Wichita State
DP/UTL (Non-Pitcher) – Amber Atkinson, USF
At-Large – Sarah Queen, Houston
 
All-Conference Second Team
P – Alea White, UCF
P – Emily Watson, Tulsa
C – Rylie Spell, Tulsa
INF – Erin Emanuel, UCF
INF – Arielle James, Houston
INF – Kyler Trosclair Klatt, Memphis
INF – Shelby Estocado, Tulsa
INF – Ryleigh Buck, Wichita State
OF – Megan Greenwell, UCF
OF – Maya Thomas, Houston
OF – Mikayla Whitten, Tulsa
DP/UTL – Haley Meinen, Tulsa
DP/UTL – Paige Luellen, Wichita State
At-Large – Baylee Smith, Memphis
At-Large – Molly Smith, Memphis
 
All-Rookie Team
Denali Schappacher, UCF
Briana Marcelino, UConn
Erin Poepping, ECU
Aspen Howie, Houston
Baylee Smith, Memphis
Georgina Corrick, USF
Bailee Nickerson, Wichita State