LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Ten student-athletes remain in the running for the 2023 TUCCI/NFCA Division I Freshman of the Year award, the Association revealed on Thursday afternoon. The winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 30, prior to the start of the 2022 NCAA Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
This year’s finalists hail from eight different universities and represent five NCAA Division I conferences from across the nation.
UCLA and Duke each had two student-athletes on the list. The duo of Megan Grant and Jordan Woolery bring the Bruins' total of top-10 finalists to seven, while Cassidy Curd and D’Auna Jennings are the first two Blue Devils to reach this stage. Tennessee’s Karlyn Pickens is the fifth Lady Vol to make the list. Makenna Reid is the third Florida State representative, while Stanford’s NiJaree Canady and Arkansas’ Reagan Johnson are the second Cardinal & Razorback, respectively.
The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and Pac-12 Conference led the way with three honorees apiece, while the Southeastern Conference had two selections. There was also one student-athlete apiece from the Big Ten Conference and Missouri Valley Conference.
At the time of the release, Indiana’s Taryn Kern was named the Big Ten’s Player and Freshman of the Year with (Pac-12) and Northern Iowa’s Alexis Pupillo (MVC) earned Freshman of the Year accolades. Kern and Pupillo join the Duke duo by being the first student-athletes from their institutions on the top 10 list.
The three finalists will be released on May 25, and as previously mentioned, the winner will be revealed on May 30. The top 10, top three and winner are 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. To be eligible, student-athletes must be nominated by their member head coach and in their first year of NCAA Division I collegiate competition as a true freshman or redshirt freshman.
In 2023, the NFCA will award Freshman of the Year honors to a student-athlete from NCAA DI, NCAA DII, NCAA DIII and NAIA. For more information about all NFCA Awards, visit nfca.org.
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Stanford
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Duke
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UCLA
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Arkansas
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Indiana
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Tennessee
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Northern Iowa
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Florida State
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TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year previous winners
2022 - Jordy Bahl, Oklahoma; 2021 – Tiare Jennings, Oklahoma; 2020 – Award was not presented; 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 nearly 6,700 coaches today!
