The Aurora University Spartan women's softball team placed four players on the 2016 Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Region teams.
 
Senior pitcher Vanessa Hartzell (Highland, Indiana/Bishop Noll H.S.), freshman catcher Elaine Walker (Schaumburg, Illinois/Schaumburg H.S.), junior second baseman Mandey Shrader (Crown Point, Indiana/Crown Point H.S.) and junior utility Laura Dierking (Naperville, Illinois/Naperville Central H.S.) were named Great Lakes All-Region by the NFCA. 
 
AU finished the 2016 season with a 32-14 overall record and Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) regular season champions. With regular season success, AU placed Hartzell, Walker and Shrader on the First-Team and Dierking on the Second-Team. Hartzell was the NACC Pitcher of the Year and First-Team All-Conference, Walker was named the NACC Position Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and First-Team All-Conference, Shrader was Second-Team All-Conference, and Dierking was named NACC First-Team All-Conference.
 
At the conclusion of the NCAA Division III Softball Lake Forest Regional this past weekend, Hartzell was named to the All-Tournament Team. She finished with a team best 20-9 record with a 1.63 earned run average. In 39 appearances, she had 26 starts with 21 complete games and three shutouts with seven saves. She threw 189-1/3 innings, striking out 195 with opponents' batting .237 against her.
 
Walker finished with a team-leading .470 batting average, 11 doubles, two triples, seven home runs, 39 runs batted in and 32 runs scored. She added a .711 slugging percentage and .497 on-base percentage.
 
Shrader, selected as an at-large on the first-team, finished with a .382 batting average, 39 runs scored, was hit by 12 pitches and was 17-of-19 in stolen bases. She had 11 doubles, one triple, one home run, 18 runs batted in with a .487 slugging percentage, a .463 on-base percentage and a .950 fielding percentage.
 
Dierking, a utility position selection after playing multiple positions including designated player, right field and second base throughout the season. She finished with a .329 batting average, 30 runs scored, 33 runs batted in, one double and six home runs.
 
The NFCA First-Team All-Region selections now move on to the All-American selection process. The 2016 NFCA All-American Teams will be announced on Wednesday, May 25 at the Division III Softball Championships Banquet in Salem, Virginia.