May 15, 2010
San Antonio – Lauren Miller and Katie Nichols earned first team honors, leading seven St. Mary’s University Rattlers on the 2010 All-Heartland Conference Softball Team. Earning second team recognition was: Kelly Baker, Arlynda Flores, Alyssa Alfaro, Taryn Munoz and Christina Rodriguez were all second team selections.
Miller (Jr., Baytown, Texas), the Rattlers leftfielder has blossomed into one of the top outfielder’s in the Heartland Conference and was rewarded with her first All-Heartland Conference honor. She hit a career-best .331 with 14 doubles, 4 homeruns, 30 RBI and 36 runs scored in 53 games. Miller had 20 games with two or more base hits this season. She earned All-Heartland Conference Tournament honors after smacking two homeruns in the championship game. Earlier this season, she tied the school record for base hits in a single game with five against Newman University.
Nichols (Fr., San Marcos, Texas), St. Mary’s centerfielder led the Rattlers with a .365 average, 10 doubles, 4 homeruns, 27 RBI and 35 runs scored. She was one of only two freshmen on the first team. She had 17 games with two or more base hits.
Alfaro (Jr., Eagle Pass, Texas), is hitting .340 with 10 doubles, 9 homeruns, 37 RBI and 33 runs scored. She had 12 games with two or more base hits and 12 games with two or more RBI. She leads the Rattlers in both homeruns and RBI. She earned Heartland Conference Hitter of the Week honors twice this season. She had the game-winning two-run single in the sixth inning to lead St. Mary’s to the win in the first round of the Heartland Conference Tournament against the University of the Incarnate Word.
Baker (Jr., Arlington, Texas) received All-Heartland recognition for the third straight season. She is hitting .309 with 11 doubles, 31 RBI and 16 runs scored in 52 games played. Baker was named to the Heartland Conference All-Tournament team after hitting .333 in the Rattlers run to the title. She has nine games with two or more base hits and 11 games with two or more RBI.
Arlynda Flores (Sr., Uvalde, Texas), was an All-Heartland Conference pick for the third straight season. She is hitting .329 with 10 doubles, 8 homeruns, 33 RBI and 39 runs scored. She has 10 games with two or more base hits and eight games with two or more RBI. She is coming off a strong showing at the Heartland Conference Tournament, in which she hit .500 with 2 homeruns, 2 RBI and 3 runs scored.
Munoz (Sr., Bulverde, Texas) has a 22-12 record on the mound with a 2.88 ERA, 26 complete games and 5 shutouts. She has struck out 144 in 208.2 innings of work and opposing batters are hitting just .236 against her. She was named Heartland Conference Tournament MVP after going 3-0 at the tournament. The all-conference honor was the second for Munoz. She finished the season strong, winning her last four games. Munoz was also named Heartland Conference Pitcher of the Week twice.
Rodriguez (Fr., San Marcos, Texas) received all-conference honors in her first season with the team. She hit .341 with 6 homeruns, 29 RBI and 18 runs scored. She has 12 games with two or more base hits and eight games with two or more runs driven in.
St. Mary’s will head to its ninth NCAA Division II South Central Region Tournament this week. The eighth seeded Rattlers (34-19 overall) will face top seeded Midwestern State in the first round of the tournament on Saturday at 9 a.m.