LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Fifty student-athletes were revealed this afternoon as part of the 2022 Schutt Sports/NFCA Division III National Player and Pitcher of the Year awards list. 

The Player of the Year award was established in 2016 to honor the season’s top performer in NCAA Division III, and was expanded in 2019 to include both a Player and Pitcher of the Year honoree.

The list is compiled and the award is voted on by the elected members of the NFCA Division III All-American Committee with one head coach representing each of the 10 NCAA regions. To be eligible, a student-athlete’s head coach must be a member.

Headlining the list are 26 returning NFCA All-Americans. In all, the group consists of two graduate students, eight seniors, 14 juniors, 15 sophomores, and 11 freshmen representing 35 programs from 23 different conferences. 

Five schools — Christopher Newport, East Texas Baptist, Eastern Connecticut State, Salisbury and Texas Lutheran — had three student-athletes apiece on the list, while five others placed two.

The Top 25 finalists for the 2022 Schutt Sports/NFCA Division III National Player and Pitcher of the Year awards will be announced on May 10. A student-athlete does not have to be on the Top 50 list to be considered for the Top 25. The winner of each award will be announced on June 3, following the conclusion of the 2022 season.

Last year’s winners were Virginia Wesleyan’s Jessica Goldyn (Player) and Hanna Hull (Pitcher). Hull also claimed Player of the Year honors in 2017 and 2018, before the award was split into separate Pitcher and Player honors. Lynchburg’s Mackenzie Chitwood (Player) and Illinois Wesleyan’s Ally Wiegand (Pitcher) won in 2019, while UT Tyler pitcher Kelsie Batten was the inaugural Player of the Year honoree in 2016. The award was not presented in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Schutt Sports/NFCA Division III National Player and Pitcher of the Year Top 50