2010 USA Softball Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. --- The Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA), the National Governing Body of Softball in the United States, has selected its initial “Watch List” for the 9th Annual USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year Award. This award, which is considered the most prestigious honors in Division I women’s collegiate softball, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by female collegiate softball players across the country. Past winners of this award include UCLA’s Stacey Nuveman, Florida State’s Jessica Van der Linden, three-time winner Texas pitcher Cat Osterman, Tennessee’s Monica Abbott, Virginia Tech’s Angela Tincher and 2009 winner Washington pitcher/hitter Danielle Lawrie. 

The 2010 Pre-Season Watch List is comprised of 50 players representing 35 schools and 14different NCAA Division I Conferences. The list includes 27 seniors, 17 juniors and six sophomores.

The ASA will announce the 25 finalists on April 7. A player does not have to appear on this initial watch list to be considered as a top 25 finalist. However, once the top 25 finalists are named the winner of the award will come from that list. *Freshman qualify for the top 25 list once they have competed at the collegiate level.

Name (School) – Year – Position – Hometown

Valerie Arioto (California) – Junior – Utility – Pleasanton, Calif. 
Donna Bourgeois (ULL) – Junior – Pitcher – Lafayette, La. 
Chelsea Bramlett (Mississippi State) – Senior – Catcher/Infield – Cordova, Tenn.
Stephanie Brombacher (Florida) – Junior – Pitcher – Pembroke Pines, Fla. 
Neena Bryant (Oregon) –Senior – Outfield - Placentia, Calif.
Anna Cahn (Cal Poly) – Junior – Pitcher/Designated Player – Los Alamitos, Calif. 
Whitney Canion (Baylor) – Sophomore – Pitcher – Aledo, Texas 
Stacie Chambers (Arizona) – RS-Junior – Catcher – Glendale, Ariz.
Lauren Delaney (Northwestern) – Senior – Pitcher – Jefferson City, Mo.
Krista Donnenwirth (Arizona State) – Junior - SS/Third Base – Mission Viejo, Calif.
Kelsi Dunne (Alabama) – Junior – Pitcher – Port Orange, Fla.
Francesca Enea (Florida) – Senior – Outfield – Woodland Hills, Calif.
Amber Flores (Oklahoma) – Senior – Infield – Calexico, Calif.
Alisa Goler (Georgia) – Junior – Infield – Frankfort, Ill.
Kelly Grieve (Tennessee) – Junior –Outfield –Asheville, N.C. 
Alissa Haber (Stanford) – Senior – Outfield- Newark, Calif.
Sarah Hamilton (Florida State) – Junior – Pitcher – Tallahassee, Fla. 
Ashley Hansen (Stanford) – Sophomore – Infield – Chandler, Ariz.
Becca Heteniak (DePaul) – Senior – Pitcher - Simi Valley, Calif.
Katie Holverson (Nevada) – Senior – Pitcher – Anthem, Ariz.
Tiffany Huff (Tennessee) – Senior – Catcher/First Base – Saugus, Calif.
Molly Johnson (Kentucky) – Senior –Infield – Tucson, Ariz. 
Megan Langenfeld (UCLA) – Senior – Pitcher/First Base – Bakersfield, Calif.
Brittany Lastrapes (Arizona) – Junior – Outfield - Laguna Niguel, Calif.
Danielle Lawrie (Washington) – Senior - Pitcher – Langley, British Columbia
Sam Marder (Ohio State) – Senior – Catcher - Calabasas, Calif.
Morgan Melloh (Fresno State) – Junior - Pitcher – Fishers, Ind.
Rachel Mitchell (LSU) – Senior – Outfield – LaPorte, Texas
Adrienne Monka (Northwestern) – Sophomore – Infield – Rancho Cucamongo, Calif. 
Charlotte Morgan (Alabama) – Senior – Pitcher/Utility – Moreno Valley, Calif.
Nikki Nemitz (Michigan) – Senior – Pitcher – St. Clair Shores, Mich.
Carly Normandin (Massachusetts) – Senior – Outfield – Gardner, Mass.
Tara Oltman (Creighton) – Senior – Pitcher – Cortland, Neb.
Kimi Pohlman (Washington) – Sophomore – Outfield - Sammamish, Wash. 
Nikki Prier (Jacksonville State) – Senior – Infield – Raleigh, N.C. 
Jessica Purcell-Fitu (BYU) – Junior – Catcher – Walnut, Calif. 
Melissa Roth (Louisville) – Senior – Catcher – Long Beach, Calif. 
Katie Schroeder (UCLA) – Junior – Outfield – Yorba Linda, Calif. 
Taylor Schlopy (Georgia) – Junior – Pitcher/Outfield – West Hills, Calif. 
Kirsten Shortridge (LSU) – Senior – Pitcher/Outfield– Keller, Texas
Kaila Shull (UCLA) –Senior – Catcher/Outfield – Lodi, Calif.
Danielle Spaulding (North Carolina) – Senior – First Base/Pitcher - Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Rhea Taylor (Missouri) – Junior – Outfield – Buford, Ga.
Chelsea Thomas (Missouri) – Sophomore – Utility – Pleasantville, Iowa 
Brooke Turner (Long Beach State) – Junior – Pitcher – Buena Park, Calif.
Maggie Viefhaus (Michigan) - Senior – Infielder – Pacific, Mo. 
Kristen Wadwell (Louisville) – Senior – Pitcher/Infield – Sydney, Australia 
Amberley Waits (Louisiana Tech) – Senior – Infield – Cleburne, Texas 
Kelsi Weseman (Georgia Tech) – Sophomore – Infield – Hutto, Texas
Jen Yee (Georgia Tech) - Senior - Second Base – North Delta, British Columbia

Just days before the start of post-season play, a list of 10 finalists will be named and released on May 12. The final three finalists will be announced May 26 while the winner of the 2010 USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year Award will be announced prior to the start of the 2010 NCAA Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.

About ASA 

The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation's largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 76 local associations. The ASA has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 210,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than three million. For more information on the ASA, visit www.asasoftball.com. 

About USA Softball 

USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men’s, Women’s, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’ National Team programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of the only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won eight World Championship titles including the last six consecutive as well as claimed two World Cup of Softball titles. For more information about USA Softball, please visit www.usasoftball.com