From throwing two no-hitters to spearheading the Long Beach State softball team to an at-large bid in the NCAA tournament, freshman pitcher Erin Jones-Wesley has never shied away from the spotlight, and Tuesday the Big West Conference took note of that.
Jones-Wesley was named both the Big West Pitcher of the Year and Freshman Pitcher of the Year, which marked just the second time in conference history that a player has won both awards.
Teammate Brooke Turner, who secured an honorable mention nod, was the only other pitcher in Big West history to win both conference pitcher of the year and freshman pitcher of the year in the same season.
Jones-Wesley’s freshman season has been nothing short of impressive as she leads the Big West in ERA (1.45) and wins (22), while ranking fifth in innings pitched (183.2), and second in strikeouts (163), opposing batting average (.211) and runs allowed (48).
Some of her highlights this season include two no-hitters against Baylor and Utah State, and two one-hitters against DePaul and Illinois, while winning six Big West Pitcher of the Week awards in the process. She also led the 49ers to a 2-1 victory against then-No. 6-ranked Oklahoma.
The freshman became LBSU’s second Big West Pitcher of the Year in four years and the fourth Big West Freshman Pitcher of the Year in five seasons.
Jones-Wesley’s honors, coupled with a first-team All-Big West honor, highlighted a banner day that saw eight different players named to the Big West All-Conference teams.
She was joined on the All-Big West First Team by senior third baseman Liz Javier and freshman outfielder Hannah De Gaetano.
Senior first baseman Christina Schallig, sophomore second baseman Nalani St. Germain and freshman designated player Sarah Carrasco were all named second-team All-Big West.
Junior pitcher Taylor Petty also earned an honorable mention nod despite battling a hip injury for most of the season.
Javier claimed first-team All-Big West honors for the second straight season as she finished with a .325 batting average to go with two home runs and 25 RBI. She also ranked in the top six in conference games as she hit .397 (fifth), with 25 hits (sixth) and a .479 on-base percentage(sixth).
De Gaetano, one of just three freshmen named first-team, tied for the team lead with a .328 batting average, while also finishing with two home runs and 17 RBI. In Big West play, she ranked among the conference leaders in five different categories. She hit .389 (seventh) with a .444 on-base percentage (ninth), while also finishing with 28 hits (second), six doubles (fifth) and 37 total bases (sixth).
Schallig earned a spot on the second-team after hitting .344 in conference action, with four home runs and 17 RBI. She finished among the Big West leaders in in slugging percentage (.625/sixth), RBIs (second), doubles (6/fifth), home runs (fifth) and total bases (40/second).
St. Germain, an honorable mention pick as a freshman in 2010, made the second-team after leading LBSU in home runs (8) and stolen bases (12). She batted .320 for the season, while also finishing with team highs in runs (27), hits (49), RBI (29), total bases (80), slugging percentage (.523) and sacrifice flies (4).
She ranked among the league leaders in slugging percentage (ninth), RBI (ninth), home runs (fifth), total bases (eighth), walks (eighth) and stolen bases (sixth).
Carrasco earned a spot on the second team after tying for the team lead with a .328 batting average, while also finishing with two home runs and 20 RBI. She improved those numbers in Big West play with a .348 batting average with a home run and 11 RBI.
Petty and Turner added to their career milestones with Turner earning a spot on an all-conference team for the fourth straight year, while Petty was named for her third consecutive year.
Petty finished second, behind Jones-Wesley, in ERA in the Big West. She also led the Big West in batting average against as she limited her opponents to a .211 average.
The 49ers (37-16) will begin the NCAA tournament against San Diego State (32-19) on Friday at 2:30 p.m. in Tempe, Ariz.
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