June 16, 2009

SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio - One of the most prolific student-athletes in Notre Dame College history is now also part of NAIA softball history. Anna Ball, a native of Bellville, Ohio, and a four-year starter for the Falcons, has closed out her career on College Road and entered the official record book of NAIA Softball in three categories, two as the sport's all-time leader.

With a career .516 (281-for-545) batting average and an all-time slugging percentage of .862, Ball hangs up her blue and white Falcon threads as the NAIA's all-time leader in each category. She also collected 87 doubles in her NDC career; that now stands as the second-highest career total in the NAIA circuit, which includes over 200 softball programs.

"This is an amazing accomplishment for Anna," said Notre Dame Head Coach Amy Kyler, who led the Falcons to their first-ever NAIA National Championship Tournament appearance in May. "She worked hard and is a very talented player. These records were built on dedication and an incredible focus."

In four years, Ball tore apart the NDC record book, rewrote it and etched her name in stone. In those four seasons (2006-09), she played in 174 consecutive ballgames, collected 281 hits and posted a career .580 on-base percentage. Among her 281 base hits were 87 doubles and 30 home runs. In most of those categories, Ball effectively lapped the field when it comes to eclipsing any previous program records.

The left-swinging third baseman essentially did the same thing with her .516 career average on a national scale. She topped the previous NAIA mark (Melanie Mason, Northwestern-Iowa), .461) by more than 50 points. Ball's .862 slugging mark tops a mark of .857 (Melissa Dowlen-Athens State-Ga.) which has stood since 1995. And her 87 doubles is bettered by only one player (Corrie Allen, Olivet Nazarene-Ill.), who clubbed 107 two-baggers from 1996 to 1999.

The all-time records are the first achieved by a student-athlete at Notre Dame College, which has sponsored intercollegiate athletics for more than 40 years.

Ball was named the 2009 American Mideast Conference Player of the Year after leading the league in batting average (.535), on-base percentage (.608), slugging percentage (.861), runs (55), hits (77), total bases (124) and walks (27). She also won the AMC's top-player award in 2007, as a sophomore. (In 2008, Ball was named AMC North Division Player of the Year, when the conference issued division awards only.) In her debut season (2006), she was named AMC North Freshman of the Year.

In 2007, Ball was noticed on the national scene for the first time, when she was tabbed as a Second Team All-American. Last year (2008), she batted .532 (74-for-139) with 26 doubles, 12 home runs and 51 runs scored and became the first female athlete in NDC history to be named a First Team All-American. In 2009, the former St. Peter's High School (Mansfield, Ohio) standout led the Falcons to the national tournament in Decatur, Ala., where the team went on a run that took them all the way to the NAIA's Elite Eight.

As NDC Director of Athletics Susan Hlavacek notes, Anna Ball's success at Notre Dame hasn't been limited the softball diamond. As a middle childhood education major, she carries a grade-point average of 3.5 and was named an NAIA Scholar-Athlete in 2008 and 2009.

"Anna's leadership, dedication and athletic talents have been instrumental in the success of the Falcon softball program," said NDC Director of Athletics Susan Hlavacek. "She is an excellent role model, on and off the field."