By Chad Waller, NAIA Director of Communications & Sports Information

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has announced the 2014 Softball All-America teams, selected by the NAIA All-America committee. Sophomore Nicole Nonnemacher of Saint Xavier (Ill.) is honored as the NAIA Pitcher of the Year and senior second baseman Hannah Gardner of Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) is recognized as the NAIA Player of the Year. The All-America teams are comprised of First Team, Second Team and Honorable Mention selections.

Nonnemacher, the younger sister and teammate of Megan, was the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year. The native of Bloomington, Ill., led the NAIA in ERA (0.67), ranked third in batters struck out per game (10.68) and was 16th in total wins (21). On the year, she went 21-6 overall, starting 24 games and compiled 16 shutouts. She tossed 189 1/3 innings and had an opponent batting average of .153, which was good for third in the NAIA. Nonnemacher led the Cougars to a No. 8 ranking in the final Coaches’ Top 25 Poll (May 6) and a trip to the National Championship Opening Round.

Gardner finished her season ranked first in the NAIA in RBIs per game (1.33), second in total RBIs (73), third in runs scored (74), sixth in total hits (90) and sixth in batting average (.533). On the season, Gardner started in 55 games and tallied 20 doubles, a team-high 12 home runs and only struck out six times in 169 at-bats. The Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) Player of the Year hit safely in 47 contests and had a season-long 13-game hitting streak. She was part of a team to win the CCAC regular-season and tournament titles, advance to the NAIA Softball World Series and hold a No. 4 ranking in the final Coaches’ Poll.

Since the Player of the Year award inception in 1998, Gardner earns Olivet Nazarene University’s first such honor. Nonnemacher is the first Cougar to become Pitcher of the Year since it began in 1999.

Three individuals are repeat First-Team All-Americans: Nonnemacher, Caroline Sagrera of Spring Hill (Ala.) and Gardner. Five other players return from the 2013 All-America Second Team: Cassie Daniels of Auburn Montgomery (Ala.), Michele Rupard of Central Methodist (Mo.), Justine Phillips of Olivet Nazarene, Brooke Shell of Grace (Ind.) and Megan Nonnemacher of Saint Xavier.
2014 NAIA Softball All-America Teams

First Team (sorted by position)
Name	Institution	Position
Nicole Nonnemacher ^	Saint Xavier (Ill.)	P
Cassie Daniels %	Auburn Montgomery (Ala.)	P
Caroline Sagrera ^	Spring Hill (Ala.)	P
Randi Wimpy	Reinhardt (Ga.)	C
Michele Rupard %	Central Methodist (Mo.)	C
Hannah Gardner ^	Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)	INF
Kyndra Holasek	Oklahoma City	INF
Jenna Jorgenson	Concordia (Calif.)	INF
Cassidy Littlefield	Georgia Gwinnett	INF
Annette Merjano	Concordia (Calif.)	INF
Amanda Trampe	Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)	OF
Randi Yousey	St. Gregory’s (Okla.)	OF
Dominique Corona	Belhaven (Miss.)	OF
Kim Pierce	Southeastern (Fla.)	OF
Heidi Daniel	Bryan (Tenn.)	DP
Brittanee Grove	William Penn (Iowa)	UTL
Justine Phillips %	Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)	INF
Caitlin Santefort	Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)	P
Aubrey Utley &	Central Methodist (Mo.)	P
Madison Luck	Reinhardt (Ga.)	P
Second Team (sorted by position)
Name	Institution	Position
Reba DePriest	Biola (Calif.)	P
Jordan Hood	Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)	P
Stevie Goldstein	Concordia (Calif.)	P
Jessica Roper	Cumberland (Tenn.)	C
Lauren Shaw	Auburn Montgomery (Ala.)	C
KC Dunne	Davenport (Mich.)	INF
Jasmine Shelby	William Carey (Miss.)	INF
Taylor Triplett	USC Beaufort (S.C.)	INF
Lizzie Fela	Southern Wesleyan (S.C.)	INF
Brooklyn Sparks	St. Gregory’s (Okla.)	INF
Kristin Benton	Campbellsville (Ky.)	OF
Rachel Laird	Houston-Victoria (Texas)	OF
Ryan Norton	Simpson (Calif.)	OF
Alex Lovelace	Taylor (Ind.)	OF
Abbey Wilmes	Grand View (Iowa)	DP
Lauren Ehle	Taylor (Ind.)	UTL
MacKenzie Bowden	William Woods (Mo.)	P
Nickayla Skinner &	College of Idaho	P
Brooke Thomas	LSU Alexandria (La.)	OF
Mary Jordan	Langston (Okla.)	C
Honorable Mention (sorted by school)
Name	Institution
Taylor Powell	Auburn Montgomery (Ala.)
Megan Eldredge	Benedictine (Kan.)
Kelli Traffas	Bethany (Kan.)
Natalie Newell	Bethel (Ind.)
Jenny Shepherd	Brenau (Ga.)
Katie Wilkinson	Cal State San Marcos
Jessica Sheldon	Central Baptist (Ark.)
Heidi Walburg	Cornerstone (Mich.)
Alex Vargas	Dickinson State (N.D.)
Khadijah Bland	Friends (Kan.)
Brooke Shell %	Grace (Ind.)
Jessica Grochala	Grand View (Iowa)
Shelby Smith	Houston-Victoria (Texas)
Kati Steffen	Morningside (Iowa)
Hannah Wilbur	Oklahoma Baptist
Cheryl Sendzik	Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)
Katrisha Arocha	Our Lady of the Lake (Texas)
Megan Nonnemacher %	Saint Xavier (Ill.)
Devon Frazier	St. Gregory’s (Okla.)
Ashley Wojnowski	Union (Ky.)

Player of the Year: Hannah Gardner, Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)
Pitcher of the Year: Nicole Nonnemacher, Saint Xavier (Ill.)

^ 2013 First Team All-American
% 2013 Second Team All-American
& 2013 Honorable Mention All-American