LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Ten student-athletes remain in the running for the 2024 TUCCI/NFCA Division I Freshman of the Year award, the Association revealed on Thursday afternoon. The winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 28, prior to the start of the 2024 NCAA Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
This year’s finalists hail from nine different universities and represent six NCAA Division I conferences from across the nation.
Top-ranked Texas was the lone program with two student-athletes on the list. The duo of Kayden Henry and Teagan Kavan doubled the Longhorns’ top-10 total to four. Oklahoma’s Ella Parker is the eighth Sooner to make the list with Florida State’s Jaysoni Beachum and Arizona’s Regan Shockey as the fourth honoree from their respective programs. Keagan Rothrock is the third Florida Gator and Maddia Groff collects the second nod for Southern Illinois.
The trio of Karli Godwin, Bridget Nemeth and Sophie Sun are representing Oklahoma State, Penn State and Harvard on the top 10 for the first time. Sun is also the first Ivy League student-athlete in the final 10.
Four of the honorees hail from the Big 12, while there was one student-athlete apiece from the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten Conference, Ivy League, Pac-12 Conference and Southeastern Conference.
At the time of the release, Sun was named the Ivy’s Player and Rookie of the Year, the first time that distinction has been betowed on a league’s student-athlete in the same season. Additionally, Beachum (ACC), Groff (Missouri Valley), Kavan (Big 12) and Nemeth (Big 10) took home their conference’s top freshman honors. Additionally, seven student-athletes earned first-team accolades and two more were named to their league’s second teams.
The three finalists will be released on May 23, and as previously mentioned, the winner will be revealed on May 28. The top 10, top three and winner is voted on by the NFCA Division I All-America Committee.
The TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year award was created in 2014 to honor outstanding athletic achievement among Division I freshmen softball student-athletes. In 2024, the NFCA will award Freshman of the Year plaudits to a student-athlete from NCAA DI, NCAA DII, NCAA DIII and NAIA. For more information about all NFCA Awards, visit nfca.org.
Third Base
Florida State
First Base
Oklahoma State
Pitcher
Southern Illinois
Outfield
Texas
Pitcher
Texas
Pitcher
Penn State
DP/UT-NP
Oklahoma
Pitcher
Florida
Outfield
Arizona
Shortstop
Harvard
TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year previous winners
2023 – NiJaree Canady, Stanford; 2022 – Jordy Bahl, Oklahoma; 2021 – Tiare Jennings, Oklahoma; 2019 – Danielle Williams, Northwestern; 2018 – Jocelyn Alo, Oklahoma; 2017 – Rachel Garcia, UCLA; 2016 – Amanda Lorenz, Florida; 2015 – Paige Parker, Oklahoma; 2014 – Annie Aldrete, Tennessee & Kasey Cooper, Auburn
NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year
The NFCA (National Fastpitch Coaches Association) is the professional organization for fastpitch softball coaches. Known for its highly-regarded TUCCI/NFCA Freshman of the Year Awards, the NFCA also educates and supports softball coaches on a variety of different levels: from podcasts to a comprehensive drills database, to in-person events and National Convention.
Learn more about the NFCA and consider joining over 7,000 coaches today!
