Pride Draftees Close Out Regular Season, Stand Out Nationally

As the NCAA’s regular softball season draws to a close and conference tournaments (and eventually the 2012 Women’s College World Series) approach, let’s look at where the  2012 USSSA Pride Draftees and their college teams stand.

8th overall draft pick Valerie Arioto and her Cal Bears rank number 1 in all three of the major national polls (NCAA, USA Today/NFCA Coaches, and ESPN.com) with a 48-3 record and one series to go.  On May 10-11, the Bears will face off against #2 Arizona State.

Individually, University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Christi Orgeron and Arioto find themselves in the national top ten best in 4 and 5 fields, respectively. Orgeron, the 20th overall pick in the 2012  NPF Draft, holds the top spot in the nation for RBI per game with 1.82, while Arioto has had the most walks of any player in the NCAA this season at 1.35 per game.

5th overall pick Kristyn Sandberg of Georgia currently ranks 13th nationally in on-base percentage at .547, and Nikia Williams, the 16th draft pick, has the 15th most sacrifice flies nationally with 4.0. Michelle Moultrie of Florida, the 12th draft pick, was 16th in runs per game with 1.07, and 1st Pick Brittany Mack ranked 40th in strikeouts-per-seven-innings with 8.0.

4th-pick Andrea Harrison of UCLA currently holds the 47th spot nationally in home runs per game with.27.  Harrison and UCLA will take on Oregon this Sunday in the closing series of their regular season from May 10-12.

Below, see in full where the 2012 USSSA Pride Draftees and their teams rank, courtesy of the NCAA.

TEAM RANKINGS:

School USSSA Pride Draftee NCAA Rank USA Today/NFCA Coaches Rank ESPN.com Rank
California Valerie Arioto

1

1

1

Florida Michelle Moultrie

7

6

7

UCLA Andrea Harrison

11

17

17

Louisiana-Lafayette Christi Orgeron

13

5

6

Georgia Kristyn Sandberg

15

11

11

Washington Nikia Williams

17

14

15

LSU Brittany Mack

24

22

24

INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS:

Homeruns Per Game

6

Valerie Arioto (.41)

7

Christi Orgeron (.41)

23

Kristyn Sandberg (.31)

47

Andrea Harrison (.27)

Batting Average

60

Valerie Arioto (.398)

66

Michelle Moultrie (.395)

73

Christi Orgeron (.391)

RBI Per Game

1

Christi Orgeron (1.82)

23

Valerie Arioto (1.08)

67

Andrea Harrison (.88)

90

Kristyn Sandberg (.83)

Earned Runs Average

16

Valerie Arioto (1.29)

Strikeouts Per Seven Innings

26

Valerie Arioto (8.4)

40

Brittany Mack (8.0)

Victories

60

Valerie Arioto (19.0)

Walks

1

Valerie Arioto (1.35)

20

Nikia Williams (.79)

27

Kristyn Sandberg (.76)

35

Christi Orgeron (.73)

Triples

25

Nikia Williams (4.0)

25

Michelle Moultrie (4.0)

Stolen Bases

68

Michelle Moultrie (.39)

Sacrifice Flies

15

Nikia Williams (4.0)

Slugging Percentage

3

Valerie Arioto (1.009)

12

Christi Orgeron (.872)

22

Kristyn Sandberg (.832)

65

Andrea Harrison (.701)

84

Michelle Moultrie (.667)

Runs Per Game

3

Christi Orgeron (1.29)

12

Valerie Arioto (1.12)

16

Michelle Moultrie (1.07)

Homeruns

4

Valerie Arioto (21.0)

7

Christi Orgeron (20.0)

17

Kristyn Sandberg (17.0)

On-Base Percentage

2

Valerie Arioto (.626)

13

Kristyn Sandberg (.547)

By Caitlin Schwartz

 

About USSSA Florida Pride:

The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.

About NPF:

National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Nashville, TN. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL). NPF is the Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball in the category of women’s fastpitch softball since 2002.

About USSSA:

The United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), headquartered in Osceola County, Florida, USSSA is the World’s Largest Multi-sport Athletic Organization. Founded in 1968, USSSA has grown to over 3.7 million participants, competing in 13 nationally sanctioned sports including Baseball, Fastpitch, Slow Pitch, Karate, Basketball, Soccer and more! For more information on USSSA and to register your team visit USSSA.com. Also be sure to visit USSSAToday.com for the latest USSSA News!