Three Bearcats are Chosen First Team All-Northwest Conference in Softball

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- Three Willamette University softball players have been selected First Team All-Northwest Conference for the 2012 season, and five Bearcats have been chosen Second Team All-NWC, in voting by the NWC head coaches. Overall, 16 players from the NWC's eight teams were named to the First Team, with 16 on the Second Team and nine receiving Honorable Mention.

Willamette's First Team selections were Kelli Snyder (Jr., C, Longview, WA/Kelso HS), Yvonne Drabin (Jr., CF, Fremont, CA/Moreau Catholic HS) and Theresa Martin (Fr., 3B, Modesto, Ca/Johansen HS).

Bearcats named to the Second Team included Jessica Barry (Jr., LF, Cupertino, CA/Monte Vista HS/UNLV), Mica Romero (Sr., SS, Woodland, CA/Woodland Christian School), Suzannah Von Trapp (Sr., DP/3B, Salem, OR/South Salem HS), Alex Watilo (Sr., RHP, Newcastle, CA/Del Oro HS) and Heather Winslow (Fr., 1B, Oregon City, OR/Oregon City HS).

Willamette concluded the regular season with a 21-15 overall record, including 19-9 in the Northwest Conference. The Bearcats, ranked #8 in the West Region, will find out if they are selected for the NCAA Division III Tournament when team and pairings are announced on Monday, May 7.

First Team All-Northwest Conference

Snyder led the team with a .400 batting average while playing in 28 games with 23 starts. She scored 13 runs, provided 11 RBIs and recorded seven extra-base hits with five doubles and two home runs. She was 7 of 7 on stolen bases.

On defense, she achieved 76 putouts and six assists. She threw out five runners attempting to steal bases.

In three seasons at Willamette, she has played in 98 games with 85 starts. She owns a .333 career batting average with 77 hits in 231 at bats. She contributed 41 runs and 39 RBIs for the Bearcats. She is 14 of 15 on career stolen base attempts.

Snyder was named First Team All-NWC for the second time. She previously received First Team recognition in 2010.

Drabin hit .364 this season with four doubles, two triples and a home run. She played in 31 games and had 28 starts. In an 11-3 win against Whitworth on April 7, she went 3 for 3 at the plate with two runs and an RBI.

She earned two or more hits in eight games during the season. She registered 25 putouts, one assist and no errors in the outfield.

After playing primarily as a substitute in her first two seasons, Drabin moved into a starting role in 2012. She took advantage of the opportunity and now has a .311 career batting average. She has seen action in 68 games with 40 starts. She has a 1.000 career fielding percentage with 41 putouts and two assists.

Martin had an outstanding season as a freshman this spring. She produced a .398 batting average to rank second on the team. She was a starter in all 31 of her appearances.

She earned a team-high 35 hits and 30 RBIs, while scoring 21 runs. She belted eight doubles, one triple and three home runs. She finished the year with a .614 slugging percentage.

She went 4 for 4 with three runs and four RBIs in a high-scoring 19-10 win over George Fox on Feb. 25. On defense, she led the Bearcats with 66 assists and also contributed 33 putouts at third base.

Second Team All-Northwest Conference

Barry was selected to the All-Conference team for the second time. She was chosen First Team All-NWC and Second Team All-West Region in 2010.

This year, she returned to action after missing most of the 2011 season with a hand injury. Her quickness made her ideal as the team's leadoff hitter, and she responded by batting .294 and leading the Bearcats with 102 at bats and 29 runs scored. She was 19 for 19 on stolen bases.

During her three years at Willamette, she has recorded a .357 career batting average and scored 68 runs. She has been successful on 43 of 46 stolen base attempts to rank sixth all-time at Willamette in stolen bases. She has played in 83 games with 80 starts.

Romero was named to the All-Northwest Conference team for the fourth season in a row. She achieved was selected First Team All-NWC in 2009, 2010 and 2011. She earned Third Team All-West Region honors in 2010.

In 2012, she was the only member of Willamette's roster to play in 35 of the team's 36 games. She started 33 games and hit .277 with 23 runs scored. She topped the offensive chart with nine doubles and 18 walks. She hit two home runs. On defense, she finished second on the team with 62 assists.

Romero attained a .349 career batting average while playing in 146 games -- one short of the school record. She started 144 games, just two shy of the WU record. She accumulated 138 hits. She holds the Willamette career record for doubles (41), ranks second in runs scored (117) and RBIs (102) and is third in homers (13).

Von Trapp hit a career-high .349 this season while playing in 33 games with 29 starts. She registered 29 hits and scored 20 runs for the Bearcats. She walked seven times, had two sacrifice flies and provided one sacrifice bunt.

It was the second time that Von Trapp has been chosen for All-NWC honors. She also was a Second Team pick in 2009.

In her career, she saw action in 118 games, including 107 starts. She owns a .286 career batting average to go with 76 hits, 68 runs and 31 stolen bases.

Watilo was a strong pitcher for the Bearcats this spring, as she went 14-7 with a 1.87 earned run average. She struck out a career-high 84 batters and limited opponents to a .223 batting average.

On April 14, she pitched a complete-game two-hit shutout against the nation's #1 team at the time, Linfield College, in a 2-0 road win.

She ended the regular season as WU's all-time leader in pitching victories with a 52-20 career record (.722). Watilo also set Bearcat pitching records for appearances (88), games started (76) and complete games (55). She tied with Nikki Franchi '09 with for the lead with 18 solo shutouts and finished second in career innings pitched (468.0) and career strikeouts (258).

Watilo was named First Team All-NWC once (2009), Second Team All-NWC twice (2011, 2012) and Honorable Mention All-NWC once (2010). She achieved a 2.32 career ERA.

Winslow played in 33 games and was a starter each time. She connected for 30 hits on her way to a .345 batting average. She blasted 14 extra-base hits with seven doubles, two triples and a team-high five home runs.

In addition, she scored 26 runs and recorded 20 RBIs to rank second on the team in both categories. She was 9 for 10 on stolen bases.

On defense for the Bearcats, Winslow provided 215 putouts at first base to lead the team, while earning a .982 fielding percentage.