Seven Zias tapped by LSC

Freedom Newspapwers

RICHARDSON, Texas — Eastern New Mexico freshman outfielder Alex Mayo Otis has been chosen to the All-Lone Star Conference South Division softball team, released on Tuesday by the conference office.

Mayo Otis, from Phoenix, was one of seven Zias recognized by the conference. She finished fourth in the LSC in hitting at .436, and was second in hits with 75 and fourth in total bases with 109.

Second-team honors were accorded to senior center fielder Kristina Goodman and junior first baseman Anna Hershkowitz. Goodman batted .333 from the leadoff spot with a team-high 13 stolen bases while Hershkowitz came on strong late in the season and finished with a .302 batting average.

Honorable mention status was accorded to four freshmen — catcher Michelle Anderson, third baseman Casandra McCommons, pitcher-first baseman Kristen Cruickshank and second baseman Rebecca Quinones.

Cruickshank went 11-14 in the circle and hit a team-high 10 home runs with a .378 average for the season, while Anderson batted .420 with nine homers and 42 RBIs. Quinones hit .337 and had a team-high 50 RBIs — tied for the second-most in the program’s history — while McCommons hit .241 and provided solid defense at third base, helping to turn 17 double plays.

Three ENMU baseball players were accorded second-team All-LSC South status — senior second baseman Mike McDuffie, sophomore outfielder Clayton Young and sophomore pitcher Tyler Doughty.

McDuffie has played in 175 games, including 165 starts, since coming to ENMU in 2003 with team-bests of 191 hits and 116 runs scored in that time. An honorable mention All-South selection last season, McDuffie hit .354 in 2007.

Young ran off a 19-game hitting streak this spring and, at .390, had the 10th-highest average in the LSC among players with at least 100 at-bats. Doughty was steady in the Greyhounds’ bullpen, posting a 1-0 record, two saves and a 3.12 earned run average with 26 strikeouts over 40 1/3 innings.