NEW YORK – The 2019 BIG EAST Softball all-conference teams and major awards have been released ahead of the BIG EAST Softball Championship presented by Jeep, beginning Friday. Villanova’s Paige Rauch was unanimously selected Player of the Year, while St. John’s Madison Morris was unanimously voted as Pitcher of the Year. DePaul’s Maranda Gutierrez took home Defensive Player of the Year honors. The Co-Freshmen of the Year are Providence’s Daniela Alvarez and St. John’s Peyton Cody. St. John’s and first-year head coach Bob Guerriero were honored as the Coaching Staff of the Year.
Regular season champions and top seed St. John’s collected a conference-most seven All-BIG EAST selections, including six on the first team. DePaul and Seton Hall each had four nods, while Creighton was next with three. Butler, Providence and Villanova followed with a pair apiece.
Rauch led almost every major batting category during the conference regular season, helping Villanova secure the No. 4 seed in the BIG EAST Championship. She topped the league in batting average (.540), slugging percentage (1.060), on base percentage (.635), runs scored (20) and total bases (53). Rauch was also tied for the most home runs with seven, and she was third with 27 hits. The sophomore utility player also pitched over 50 innings in the circle for the Wildcats. She tallied 65 strikeouts, which was third in the BIG EAST, and her ERA of 3.06 was fifth in the conference. Rauch broke Villanova’s single-season home run record with 13 on April 18 against Georgetown.
Morris was a staple in the circle for St. John’s all year long, leading the Red Storm to a regular-season title and the top seed in the BIG EAST Championship. The senior led the conference with 85 strikeouts, 13 more than the next best player. She also recorded the win in all 11 starts during league play, which led the conference. In 78.1 innings of work, Morris registered the second-lowest ERA in the BIG EAST at 2.23, while her opposing batting average of .226 was third.
Gutierrez guided DePaul’s defense to a team fielding percentage of .971 in league play as the Blue Demons locked up the No. 2 seed in the BIG EAST Championship. The shortstop registered 25 putouts and 23 assists. With only two errors in 50 attempts, the sophomore posted a fielding percentage of .960. Gutierrez was also effective at the plate as she averaged .382, which was seventh in the conference and second on the team. She scored a team-high 15 runs during league action.
Alvarez became the Friars’ ace as she pitched a league-most 79.1 innings during BIG EAST play. Her team-best ERA of 3.00 was fourth in the conference. The newcomer’s eight wins placed her second in the league, and she was also tied for third with 65 strikeouts which were all top marks on the team. Alvarez helped Providence claim the No. 3 seed in the BIG EAST Championship, its first postseason appearance since 2013.
Cody became a force at the plate in her rookie campaign for St. John’s, leading the league in RBI (23) and doubles (10). Her batting average of .390 was the best for the regular season champions and fifth in the BIG EAST. The designated player also led the team with 23 hits and 42 total bases, and she was tied for fourth in the conference with 16 runs scored.
St. John’s, under the direction of first-year head coach Bob Guerriero, went 14-4 in BIG EAST play and secured the regular season crown and No. 1 seed in the BIG EAST Championship. St. John’s has now topped the league during regular season play for the third time in five seasons. The Johnnies led the conference this season in RBI (104), runs scored (111), slugging percentage (.523), doubles (33) and home runs (25). The Red Storm pitching staff combined for a league-low 2.79 ERA and .233 opposing batting average, and they were second in the BIG EAST with 117 collective strikeouts.
All of the 2019 BIG EAST Softball major award winners will showcase their skills at the BIG EAST Softball Championship presented by Jeep. There are 15 all-conference selections set to perform in the tournament, including 10 first team honorees. The action begins at The Ballpark at Rosemont on Friday with the first semifinal game at 1 p.m. ET and the second game at 4 p.m. ET, both on FS2. The semifinal winners will meet in the title game on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Each All-BIG EAST Team consists of 12 players: two pitchers, one catcher, first baseman, second baseman, shortstop, third baseman, utility/pitcher, designated player/non-pitcher and three outfielders. Votes were casted by each team’s head coaches who were not allowed to vote for their own players.
2019 BIG EAST Softball Awards
BIG EAST Player of the Year
Paige Rauch, Villanova, So.*
BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year
Madison Morris, St. John's, Sr.*
BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Maranda Gutierrez, DePaul, So.
BIG EAST Co-Freshmen of the Year
Daniela Alvarez, Providence, Fr., P
Peyton Cody, St. John’s, Fr., DP
BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
St. John’s
All-BIG EAST First Team
P – Madison Morris, St. John's, Sr.*
P – Daniela Alvarez, Providence, Fr.
C – Jessica Cothern, DePaul, Jr.*
1B – Marissa Rizzi, St. John’s, Jr.
2B – Laura Delgado, St. John’s, Jr.
SS – Maranda Gutierrez, DePaul, So.
3B – Gretchen Bowie, St. John’s, Jr.
OF – Hailey Arteaga, Seton Hall, Jr.
OF – Christina Melendez, St. John’s, Sr.
OF – Ashley Cantu, Creighton, Jr.
Utility – Paige Rauch, Villanova, So.*
DP – Peyton Cody, St. John’s, Fr.
All-BIG EAST Second Team
P – Reganne Camp, Seton Hall, Jr.
P – Laura Roecker, Creighton, Sr.
C – Kaitlin Mattera, St. John’s, Jr.
1B – Kiara Mills, Creighton, Fr.
2B – Angela Giampolo, Villanova, So.
SS – Maddie Moore, Butler, So.
3B – Janae Barracato, Seton Hall, So.
OF – Lauren Fey, Butler, Fr.
OF – Kate Polucha, DePaul, So.
OF – Emma Lee, Providence, Sr.
Utility – Darby Pandolfo, Seton Hall, Jr.
DP – Gabby O'Riley, DePaul, Fr.
*unanimous selection