May 10, 2011

Newport News, Va. - The Atlantic 10 Conference announced the 2011 Softball All-Conference teams and major award winners this afternoon with Fordham being well-represented with five players earning All-Conference or All-Rookie status, while Jocelyn Dearborn and Bridget Orchard brought home major awards, as the Atlantic 10 Player and Coach of the Year, respectively.

Dearborn was also selected First Team All-Atlantic 10, along with teammates Samantha Pellechio and Jen Mineau, while Jamie LaBovick earned Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors. Gabby Luety was the Rams' final honoree as a member of the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team.

Dearborn becomes the third Fordham softball player to be named Atlantic 10 Player of the Year, joining Katie Davis in 2005 and Beckah Wiggins in 2010.

Dearborn earns First Team All-Atlantic 10 honors for the second year in a row and enters this week's Atlantic 10 Championship ranked fourth in the league with a .392 batting average overall and .419 average in conference play. She leads the league in triples (8), runs (44), hits (69), and total bases (144), and is second in the conference with 16 home runs and a .818 slugging percentage, and third in RBI (44). The third baseman was twice named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week this season.

Mineau also earns her second straight First Team All-Atlantic 10 selection after posting a 20-7 record and a 1.37 earned run average, ranking third in the league in wins and second in ERA. She finished the year with a league-best four saves to go with 241 strikeouts, which ranked second in the Atlantic 10. In conference play, Mineau was 9-3 with a 1.27 ERA and six shutouts, piling up an incredible 122 strikeouts to just nine walks. She was a four-time Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Week.

Pellechio receives her second First Team All-Atlantic 10 selection, after earning the honor back in 2009. She had a bounce back senior season, batting .308 with nine doubles, seven home runs, and 29 RBI. In league play, Pellechio was even better with a .317 batting average, 13 runs scored, four home runs, and 14 RBI.

LaBovick earns Second Team All-Conference accolades for the second straight season. She hit .277 with 28 runs scored, seven doubles, seven stolen bases, and 16 RBI. Her defense was also stellar, committing just three errors all season for a .989 fielding percentage at first base. LaBovick picked up the tempo offensively in league play, batting .323 with a home run, three doubles, and 10 RBI.

Luety was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team, continuing a streak of at least one Fordham freshman making the squad since the team was instituted by the league in 2006. She finished the season with an impressive .317 batting average, good for third on the team, while ranking second on the team with eight home runs and third in RBI with 29. Like LaBovick, her defensive skills have been a big reason for the Rams' fielding success, posting a .995 fielding percentage behind the plate with only one error. In Atlantic 10 play, Luety hit .320 with four home runs and 11 RBI.

Orchard, currently in her tenth season at Rose Hill, picks up her second straight and fourth Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year award overall, just five days after receiving the "Iron Major" Award as Fordham Coach of the Year at the Block "F" Awards Dinner. Orchard guided the Rams to a 38-17 overall record and 16-4 mark in league play, capturing the team's second regular season title. Over the last nine seasons, Orchard has led Fordham to more than 340 wins, including nine straight appearances in the Atlantic 10 Championship and three showings in the Finals.

The Fordham softball team will begin play at the 2011 Atlantic 10 Championship on Thursday, May 12th, courtesy of a first round bye. The Rams will play at 1:00 PM against the winner of Wednesday's Charlotte-Temple match-up.