PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fl. – The Louisiana College Wildcats went 6-0 to claim their first-ever NFCA Division III Leadoff Classic Gold Bracket Championship on Sunday at Frank Brown Park in Panama City Beach.
The 3rd-ranked Wildcats defeated fellow American Southwest Conference members No. 2 Texas-Tyler and No. 4 East Texas Baptist on Sunday, 5-3 and 10 respective, en route to the title.
Texas-Tyler knocked off No. 16 Christopher Newport, 7-0, in the gold consolation game, allowing the ASC to claim a one, two, three finish in the bracket.
In the Silver Championship game, Cortland’s Jessica Harman hit a walk-off grand slam to end the game early and give the Red Dragons the bracket title with an 8-0 victory.
In the Bronze Championship Bracket, Transylvania dominated Lynchburg, 13-5, to claim the title in the bracket.
Louisiana College junior Rene Schwartzenburg claimed Most Valuable Pitcher honors by going 4-0 and allowing just one run and hits while striking out 31 over 20.0 innings of work for an ERA of just 0.35
On the offensive side, Texas-Tyler freshman Joey Cronin earned Most Valuable Player honors, as she went 13-for-17 for a batting average of .735 with two doubles, two triples, a home run, 11 RBIs, six walks and two stolen bases. Cronin ended the tournament with a slugging percentage of 1.294 and an on-base percentage of .846.
Over the course of the weekend, 72 total games were played and over 3000 fans enjoyed high-quality softball.
The NFCA Leadoff Classic will return to Frank Brown Park in 2011 and will feature some of the top junior college teams from around the nation.
2010 NFCA DIvision III Leadoff Classic Awards
Most Valuable Player: Joey Cronin – Texas-Tyler
Most Valuable Pitcher: Rene Schwartzenburg – Louisiana College
All-Tournament Team
Brie Berkopec - Denison - C
Dee Dee Burns – La Verne – OF
Meghan Fisher – East Texas Baptist – IF
Ayrika Henderson – East Texas Baptist – P
Elizabeth Holte – Christopher Newport – P
Michelle Ladanyi – Transylvania – IF
Kiley Lytheberg – Central (IA) – P
Tracey Rainey – Lake Forest – IF
Emily Ross – Alma – IF
Mary Alice Roy – Louisiana College – IF
Stacy Shepherd – Texas-Tyler - P
Katie Stalker – Wisconsin-Eau Claire – IF
Brooke Weidman – Cortland State - OF
