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4 p.m.
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Grand Canyon University Athletics
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Trierweiler wins WAC POY; GCU takes 4 major awards
5/6/2024 3:00:00 PM | Softball
Regular-season champion Lopes dominate conference postseason teams with 7 honorees
Graduate first baseman Ashley Trierweiler became the first Grand Canyon player to win WAC Player of the Year, while senior pitcher Hailey Hudson earned the program's first Pitcher of the Year award since 2016 and second baseman Savannah Kirk won the Lopes' first Freshman of the Year honor.
Lopes head coach Shanon Hays took his second WAC Coach of the Year award in three seasons after leading GCU to the regular-season conference title.
Trierweiler, Hudson and Kirk are joined on the All-WAC first team by graduate designated player Ramsay Lopez.
Senior shortstop Katelyn Dunckel, graduate utility player Kristin Fifield and junior Meghan Golden were named to the All-WAC second team.Â
"The recognition of these athletes is well deserved, and I'm thrilled to be their coach," Hays said. "The talent of this team runs so deep, which unfortunately excludes other teammates who have had all-conference caliber seasons, but we look forward to showcasing our entire squad at the WAC Tournament."
GCU won the WAC regular-season championship by five games, going 23-3 in conference play for the best WAC record since 2016 and most WAC wins since 1999. The Lopes will be the No. 1 seed in this week's WAC Tournament in Seattle, where they earned a bye to a Thursday quarterfinal.
Ashley Trierweiler | WAC Player of the Year | All-WAC first team
Trierweiler, a graduate first baseman, claims her first WAC postseason honors in five all-conference seasons, including being West Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year during a four-year career at Santa Clara before transferring for this season. She is GCU softball's first WAC Player of the Year since joining the conference in 2014.
"This is no surprise," Hays said. "She has been strong on both sides of the ball. Seems like she's on her way to another All-American season."
Trierweiler started 56 games for the Lopes, spending time at center field and first base, with 33 RBIs, 24 multi-hit games and a .521 on-base percentage as GCU's primary leadoff hitter. She leads the Lopes with 23 stolen bases on 25 attempts.
The All-American leads the nation in hits (85) while ranking third in batting average (.464) and ninth in runs per game (1.16) this season.Â
Hailey Hudson | WAC Pitcher of the Year | All-WAC first team
Hudson earns her first WAC postseason awards in her two years at GCU, after being a junior college conference pitcher of the year and all-region honoree at McClennan Community College in Texas in 2022.
Hudson becomes the GCU's first WAC Pitcher of the Year since Taylor Nowlin won the award in 2016.Â
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"She's been our workhorse all year and has had a tremendous season," Hays said.Â
Savannah Kirk | WAC Freshman of the Year | All-WAC first team
Kirk claims her first WACÂ postseason awards after an outstanding campaign made her GCU's first WAC Freshman of the Year."Sav was a lock for Frosh of the Year," Hays said. "She has been tremendous on offense and defense."Â
Kirk started 51 games for the Lopes and carries a .400 batting average with 58 hits, 19 RBIs, a .427 on-base percentage and 16 stolen bases on 18 attempts. She also notched 17 multi-hit games, and built a 10-game hitting streak.Â
Ramsay Lopez | All-WAC first team
Lopez, a graduate designated player, earned her fourth All-WAC first-team recognition in five years, spending 2020-2022 at previous WAC counterpart New Mexico State.Â
The Albuquerque, New Mexico, native ranks second in sacrifice flies (nine) in the nation this season, and sits second in the WAC in home runs (13), RBIs (55), and walks per game (.60) this season. With 68 career home runs, Lopez is tied fof fifth among active Division I players and also is No. 8Â for career walks (146).Â
Lopez is also boasting a .347 season batting average with a .681 slugging percentage.Â
Dunckel receives WAC postseason honors for her third season as a Lope, tallying all-conference recognition for all four seasons of her career after also being all-conference at Oklahoma Christian in 2021.Â
The Valley Center, California, native carries a .314 batting average this season with 51 runs, 53 hits, a team-best 15 doubles (tied with Kayla Rodgers), 42 RBIs, six home runs, a team-best six sacrifice hits and 10 stolen bases in 10 attempts.
Dunckel has started all 56Â games this season at shortstop.Â
Golden, who is from nearby Peoria, Arizona, receives her second WAC postseason honor in two seasons at GCU, where she struck out 81 batters in 83 1/3 innings this year. "I believe we could have had three or four of our pitchers on the all-conference team, but our great depth hurts us when limited slots are available," Hays said.
The junior from Centennial High School transferred from Northern Colorado before the 2022 season and is 11-3 this season with a WAC-leading 2.10 ERA. Golden threw six complete games and four shutouts.Â
Kristin Fifield | All-WAC second team
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ifield, the 2023 WAC Joe Kearney Award winner, has claimed five WAC postseason awards in her five-year GCU career.This season, The Lopes' all-time career and single-season home run record holder and GCU Division I-era career RBI record holder is hitting .353 with 12 home runs, 12 doubles, a team-best 56 RBIs and a .665 slugging percentage.Â
Fifield ranks third nationally among active Division I players with 241 career RBIs. She ranks 18th nationally for RBIs this season.
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2024 WAC Softball Postseason Award Winners
- WAC Player of the Year: Ashley Trierweiler, Gr., 1B, GCU
- WAC Pitcher of the Year: Hailey Hudson, Sr., P, GCU
- WAC Defensive Player of the Year: Karen Spadafora, Fr., C, Seattle U
- WAC Freshman of the Year: Savannah Kirk, Fr., 2B, GCU
- WAC Coach of the Year: Shanon Hays, GCU
All-WAC first teamÂ
- Kaydee Bennett, So., 2B, Abilene Christian
- Kayla Lyon, So., C/DP, California BaptistÂ
- Savannah Kirk, Fr., 2B, GCU
- Hailey Hudson, Sr., P, GCU
- Ramsay Lopez, Gr., DP, GCU
- Ashley Trierweiler, Gr., 1B, GCU
- Taylor Fitch, So., IF, Seattle UÂ
- Emily Gonzalez, So., RF, Southern Utah
- Kelci Hill, Sr., OF, Tarleton StateÂ
- Camille Corona, Fifth, 3B, UT Arlington
- Megan Gibbs, R-Jr., IF, Utah ValleyÂ
All-WAC second team
- Olivia Marble, Jr., OF, Abilene Christian
- Kalena Burns, Gr., 1B/DP, California BaptistÂ
- Presley Hosick, So., P, California Baptist
- Merissa Borkowski, Sr., OF, California Baptist
- Kate Penberthy, Fr., 3B, California BaptistÂ
- Katelyn Dunckel, Sr., SS, GCU
- Kristin Fifield, Gr., UTL, GCU
- Meghan Golden, Jr., P, GCU
- Sydney Frankenberger, Sr., CF, Seattle U
- LB Kahahawai-Kekona, So., CF, Utah Tech
- Halle Morris, Gr., P/UTL, Utah ValleyÂ
2024 WAC All-Defensive Team
- Priscilla Estrada, Jr., SS, California BaptistÂ
- Sydney Soto, Jr., OF, California BaptistÂ
- Lily Garcia, Sr., 2B, Seattle U
- Karen Spadafora, Fr., C, Seattle U
- Camille Corona, Fifth, 3B, UT ArlingtonÂ
Players Mentioned
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UTIL
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UTIL
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IF
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OF
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OF
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