BATON ROUGE — The LSU softball team placed a pair of athletes on the 33-member 2005 Louisville Slugger/National Fastipitch Coaches Association All-South Region teams.
Junior designated player Lauren Castle earned was named to the All-South first team for the second consecutive season, while junior outfielder Camille Harris was named to the second team for the first time in her career.
The Louisiana Hitter of the Week on March 9, Castle tied for the team lead in batting average at .367 and led the Tigers in hits this season with 62. The Purple and Gold Challenge Most Valuable Player also ranked sixth in the SEC in doubles. Against Mississippi State, she broke the LSU single-game record for hits with a 5-for-5 performance at the plate. In addition, she tied the single-game record for runs scored with four.
A native of Lafayette, Castle tied for the team lead with 19 multiple-hit games and also recorded six multiple-RBI games on the season. She also tied for the second-best overall hitting streak on the team at eight games.
A second-team All-Southeastern Conference selection, Harris was a member of the USA Softball Player of the Year Watch List. Along with a .338 batting average and seven home runs, she broke the LSU single season record, leads the SEC and ranks ninth in the NCAA in hit by pitches this year.
With 21 stolen bases, the Hendersonville, Tenn., native also tied for the team lead in stolen bases and ranked in the top 10 in the SEC in on base percentage, runs scored, walks and stolen bases. She recorded 13 multiple-hit games and three multiple-RBI games on the year. At South Carolina earlier in the year, she knocked in the game-winning run on a solo home run in the top of the eighth inning.
Both players will now advance to the national ballot for the opportunity to be named to the NFCA All-America team. The All-America team will be determined on May 30 and announced prior to the start of the Women’s College World Series in the first week of June.
All-South Region First Team
Monica Abbott P Tennessee
Stephanie VanBrakle P Alabama
Ashley Courtney C Alabama
Paige Jones 1B Auburn
Lauren Boone 2B Sam Houston State
Courtney Bures SS Mississippi State
Kristi Durant 3B Tennessee
Lauren Castle DP LSU
Holly Currie UT Auburn
Sarah Fekete OF Tennessee
Danyelle Gomez OF UL-Lafayette
Jennifer Davis OF Texas-San Antonio
All-South Region Second Team
Brooke Mitchell P UL-Lafayette
Sarah Pauley P Texas A & M-Corpus Christi
Jocelyn McCallum P Troy State
Aja Sherman P Louisville
Carly Kellam P Jacksonville State
Lacey Swarthout P Tennessee-Chattanooga
Shalayne Blythe P Sam Houston State
Tamra Howren C Troy State
Beth Jordan 1B McNeese State
Brittany Bryant 2B UL-Lafayette
Lindsay Schutzler SS Tennessee
Courtney Moore SS Louisville
Kristen Glowacz 3B Houston
Jessica Rogers 3B Texas-San Antonio
Jordan Praytor DP Alabama
Jennifer Jessup UT Mississippi State
Jill Robertson OF UL-Lafayette
Camille Harris OF LSU
Jackie Wilkins OF Alabama
Maigin Alexander OF Jacksonville State
Janine Sprague OF East Tennessee State