Eight Southern Miss Softball Student-Athletes Earn Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete Honors

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Eight Southern Miss softball student-athletes have earned Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete Honors. Samantha Papp, Sarah Van Schaik, Chase Nelson, Lacey Sumerlin, Heather Hill, Beth Taylor, Karley Nichols and Makenna Pierce are the eight-student athletes that were named Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athletes.

To be selected as a Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association, student-athletes must earn a GPA of at least 3.5 for the academic year.

In addition to earning NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete honors, Papp and Nelson were named to the 2019 C-USA Softball All-Academic Team and both received C-USA Commissioner's Academic Medals and were selected to the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll.

Hill and Pierce also received C-USA Commissioner's Academic Medals and were named to the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll while Van Schaik, Taylor, Sumerlin and Nichols all earned a spot on the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll.

Papp, a senior special education major and Hattiesburg, Miss. native was recently named a NCAA Division I Softball Google Cloud Academic-All America, becoming the first Southern Miss softball-student-athlete to earn the honor since Charity Butler in 2006. Papp posted an unblemished 4.0 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Papp concluded the 2019 season with a .220 batting average, a .270 slugging percentage and a .267 on-base percentage. She tallied a total of 13 runs scored, 31 hits, seven doubles, 14 runs batted in, 38 total bases, seven walks and three stolen bases.

Papp started all 52 of Southern Miss' games behind the plate in 2019, recording a .996 fielding percentage, 270 putouts and 14 assists. She committed just one error on the season.

Van Schaik, a senior nutrition and dietetics major from Petal, Miss. earned a 3.8 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Van Schaik started all 52 of Southern Miss' contest in 2019. She notched a .311 batting average, a .477 slugging percentage, a .368 on-base percentage, 21 runs scored, 47 hits, 17 doubles, one triple, two home runs, 36 runs batted in, 72 total bases, 13 walks and two stolen bases.

Van Schaik's 17 doubles ranked first in Conference USA for the 2019 season.

Nelson, a senior communication studies major who hails from Paragould, Ark. registered a 3.8 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year. Nelson earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Communication Studies along with a minor in Marketing from Southern Miss in May.

Nelson started 51 of Southern Miss' 52 games this season, with all 51 of her starts coming at second base. Nelson wrapped up the 2019 season with a .322 batting average, a .408 slugging percentage, a .403 on-base percentage, 32 runs scored, 49 hits, nine doubles, two triples, eight runs batted in, 62 total bases, 20 walks and five stolen bases.

Sumerlin, a junior elementary education major and Mobile, Ala. native earned a 3.6 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Sumerlin made 52 starts at shortstop during the 2019 season and she posted a .333 batting average, a .630 slugging percentage, a .458 on-base percentage, 30 runs scored, 46 hits, 12 doubles, one triple, nine home runs, 42 runs batted in, 87 total bases, 35 walks and one stolen base.

Hill, a redshirt sophomore sport coaching education major from Cabot, Ark. tallied a perfect 4.0 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Hill earned 37 starts and appeared in a total of 43 games during the 2019 season. Hill served primarily as the Golden Eagles' designated player, registering a .181 batting average, a .223 slugging percentage, a .274 on-base percentage, two runs scored, 17 hits, one double, one home run, eight runs batted in and 21 total bases.

Taylor, a redshirt junior elementary education major and Silverhill, Ala. native recorded a 3.9 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Taylor appeared in 24 games and earned two starts during the 2019 season. Taylor served primarily as a pinch runner and hitter and tallied a .222 batting average, a .333 slugging percentage, a .300 on-base percentage, 10 runs scored, two hits, one double, three total bases, one walk and three stolen bases.

Nichols, a sophomore communication studies major and Brandon, Miss. native posted a 3.6 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Nichols earned 28 starts and appeared in a total of 31 games during the 2019 season after returning from an injury that caused her to miss most of the first half of the season. Nichols primarily saw action as Southern Miss' starting right fielder and recorded a .378 batting average, a .432 slugging percentage, a .405 on-base percentage, 12 runs scored, 28 hits, two doubles, one triple, six runs batted in, 32 total bases, four walks and five stolen bases.

Pierce, a freshman architectural engineering technology major from Daphne, Ala. earned a 3.7 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year.

Pierce made a total of eight starts and 19 appearances in the circle in 2019. The right-hander posted a 5-3 win/loss record and a 2.80 earned run average. Over the course of 65.0 innings pitched, Pierce allowed 57 hits, 38 runs and 26 earned runs. She issued 34 walks, tallied 38 strikeouts, recorded one save and opponents batted .225 against her.

For all of the latest Southern Miss softball news, fans can follow the official Southern Miss softball Twitter account (@SouthernMissSB), Instagram account (@southernmisssb) and Facebook account (Southern Miss Softball).

Eight Southern Miss Softball Student-Athletes Earn Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete Honors

Players Mentioned

Heather Hill

Chase Nelson

Karley Nichols

Samantha Papp

Makenna Pierce

Lacey Sumerlin

Beth Taylor

Sarah Van Schaik

Related Videos