BATON ROUGE — Senior LSU softball pitcher Ashley Lewis was drafted as the fourth pick overall in the first round of the 2001 Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL) Senior Draft, which was held Saturday in San Antonio.
“For Ashley to be drafted as the fourth pick is a great compliment to her and LSU Softball,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard. Lewis, a Baton Rouge native, was drafted by the WPSL defending champion Florida Wahoos.
She is the third LSU softball player to be drafted by the WPSL. Former Tiger All-Americans Jodi Otten and Ashlee Ducote were both drafted and played professional softball.
“We are very excited for Ashley as this will be another opportunity for her to continue her fabulous career. I have always felt that overall as a pitcher and hitter she can be the most feared player in college softball.”
Entering her senior season at LSU, Lewis led the Tigers to back-to-back Southeastern Conference Championships and NCAA Regional appearances. She holds the school’s career lowest ERA at 0.92. Last season she posted a record of 22-5 with an ERA of 0.84 and 142 strikeouts.
Lewis was in the circle for the 1-0 win over rival Southern Mississippi in a 13 inning semi-final game at the NCAA Regional in Baton Rouge.
With her .281 batting average, Lewis was also important at the plate for the Tigers. She had a total of 39 hits, seven doubles, four home runs and 30 RBI for the season. The world’s premier professional fastpitch softball league for women will celebrate its fifth anniversary when spring training begins in mid-May.
The WPSL was created in 1997 to provide elite female-athletes with the opportunity to compete professionally, while providing affordably-priced entertainment for families and sports fans around the globe.
The WPSL currently consists of four teams located in “National Training Centers” in Akron, Ohio, and Plant City, Fla. The league plans to expand to at least six teams nationwide in 2002.
The Akron Racers, Florida Wahoos, Ohio Pride and Tampa Bay Firestix will play a 40-game regular-season schedule that begins in June.
2001 Women’s Professional Softball League Senior Draft
San Antonio, Texas
Dec. 2, 2000
Round 1
Tampa Bay FireStix – Courtney Dale, P/OF, UCLA
Akron Racers – Lindsey Collins, C, University of Arizona
Ohio Pride – Becky Lemke, P, University of Arizona
Florida Wahoos – Ashley Lewis, P, LSU
Round 2
Akron Racers – Allison Andrade, INF, University of Arizona
Ohio Pride – Lisa Carey, SS, University of Oklahoma
Florida Wahoos – Ashli Barrett, C, University of Oklahoma
Tampa Bay FireStix – Kim Depaul, 3B, University of Washington
Round 3
Ohio Pride – Serita Brooks, OF, Florida State University
Florida Wahoos – Lauren Bauer, OF, University of Arizona
Tampa Bay FireStix – Ginger Jones, 1B, University of Alabama
Akron Racers – Racheal Goodpaster, SS, UNLV
Round 4
Florida Wahoos – Brenda Iglesia, 3B/DP, Cal State Fullerton
Tampa Bay FireStix – Andrea Davis, UT, University of Oklahoma
Akron Racers – Nicole Giordano, OF, University of Arizona
Ohio Pride – Toni Mascarenas, 3B, University of Arizona
Round 5
Tampa Bay FireStix – Bronwyn Blair, OF, Virginia Tech
Akron Racers – Janette Koshell, OF/P, University of Tennessee
Ohio Pride – Lupe Brambila, OF, UCLA
Florida Wahoos – Charla Moore, P, University of Texas
Round 6
Akron Racers – Kelley Askew, C/OF, University of Alabama
Ohio Pride – Stephanie Swenson, P, UCLA
Florida Wahoos – Jamie Fuente, P, University of Nebraska
Tampa Bay FireStix – Sarah Farnworth, P/OF, Cal State Northridge