The Aurora University Spartan softball team had senior pitcher Anna Snyder (Grayslake, IL/Grayslake H.S.) and freshman catcher Tristan Wilcox (Lafayette, Ind./McCutcheon H.S.) named the Northern Athletics Conference (NAC) Softball Pitching and Hitting Student-Athlete of the Week.
Snyder’s domination in the circle along with Wilcox’s hitting prowess led the Spartans to the 2010 NAC Tournament Championship and an appearance in the 2010 NCAA III Softball Championship.
Snyder earned the victory in each of AU's three contests, striking out 16 hitters in 21 innings pitched. On the season, the 2010 NAC Player of the Year is 23-5 with a 1.66 earned run average, 22 complete games, five shutouts and 225 strikeouts in 181-2/3 innings pitched.
Wilcox in the three games of the NAC tournament, hit .500 with three home runs, one double, five RBIs and three runs scored. She had a 1.333 slugging percentage and a .500 on-base percentage in the tourney as well. On the season, the 2010 NAC Freshman of the Year is hitting .352 with 13 doubles, 10 home runs, 38 runs scored and 29 runs batted in.
The Spartans of Aurora University will travel to the UW-Whitewater Regional hosted by University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in Whitewater, Wis. Making their fourth appearance in six seasons in the NCAA tournament, the Spartans are the No. 7 seed in the eight-team region and will receive take on the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse on Thursday, May 13, 2010, at 4:00 p.m.
The teams that will participate in the UW-Whitewater Regional are as follows:
· #1 Luther College (Iowa) (37-5) vs. #8 St. Norbert College (Wis.) (30-6)
· #2 UW-LaCrosse (36-7) vs. #7 Aurora University (35-7)
· #3 Redlands College (Calif.) (32-12) vs. #6 Augustana College (30-13)
· #4 Carthage College (24-13) vs. #5 Alma College (30-9)
The Spartans earned their place in the 2010 NCAA Division III Championships after having won the 2010 Northern Athletics Conference (NAC) tournament championship. The Spartans have a 35-7 overall record and finished 22-2 in the NAC.
