FRISCO, Texas — UIW's Victoria Altamirano was named the Southland Conference Softball Player of the Year and McNeese's James Landreneau earned Coach of the Year honors, highlighting the league's all-conference and superlative selections announced Wednesday.
Altamirano also won Hitter of the Year while McNeese's Maddie Taylor won Pitcher of the Year. Taylor's teammate Kassidy Chance secured Freshman of the Year and Southeastern's Macie LaRue won Newcomer of the Year.
This is Altamirano's second straight season winning Player of the Year in the Southland. She finished the regular season first in home runs (16), slugging % (.893), walks, on base % (.610), runs scored (55) and OPS (1.503). The Hitter of the Year had one of the most explosive bats in the conference yet again, hitting a home run in seven out of eight SLC series this season and finding herself ranked nationally in several major categories.
Chance impressed in her first season with the Cowgirls, leading McNeese with a .400 batting average and 17 stolen bases. She tied for a team high with 23 walks and was second on the team with 64 hits and 45 runs scored. Chance closed the conference season third in the SLC with 30 runs scored, a .398 batting average, 35 hits, eight doubles, one triple, 11 RBI, 13 walks and seven stolen bases.
Fellow McNeese freshman Taylor shined in the circle, going 16-7 on the season. She led the pitching staff in wins, strikeouts (55) and 118.0 innings pitched. Taylor kept up the impressive performance down the stretch, winning eight of her last nine games and 11 of her last 13 games. That helped her claim 11 wins in her conference appearances.
LaRue was the ace of a Southeastern pitching staff that ranks fourth in Division I in earned run average and shutouts. The league leader in wins, she ranks among the SLC leaders in ERA (2nd), opposing batting average (4th), innings pitched (3rd) and strikeouts (2nd). In conference play, she has 10 wins (2nd) and is ranked among the league's best in ERA (7th), innings pitched (8th) and strikeouts.
Landreneau claims Coach of the Year for a second straight season and for the fourth time in his McNeese tenure. He
guided McNeese to a fourth straight Southland regular season title. The title is a league high 10th overall for McNeese and fifth under Landreneau. McNeese ended the season with a 37-18 overall record and 23-4 conference record. The 37 wins is the fourth 30-win season under Landreneau.
Player of the Year — Victoria Altamirano, UIW
Hitter of the Year — Victoria Altamirano, UIW
Pitcher of the Year — Maddie Taylor, McNeese
Freshman of the Year — Kassidy Chance, McNeese
Newcomer of the Year — Macie LaRue, Southeastern
Coach of the Year — James Landreneau, McNeese
First Team
| Pos. |
Player |
School |
Year |
Hometown |
| 1B |
Victoria Altamirano |
UIW |
Jr. |
Los Fresnos, Texas |
| 2B |
Claire Sisco |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
College Station, Texas |
| SS |
Chloe Magee |
Southeastern |
So. |
Watson, La. |
| 3B |
Maria Detillier |
Southeastern |
Jr. |
Gramercy, La. |
| C |
Sarah Allen |
McNeese |
Fr. |
Montgomery, Texas |
| UTL |
Kassidy Chance |
McNeese |
Fr. |
Mansfield, Texas |
| DP |
Veronica Harrison |
Lamar |
So. |
Alvin, Texas |
| OF |
Shenita Tucker |
Southeastern |
Sr. |
Richmond, Texas |
| OF |
Samantha Mundine |
McNeese |
So. |
Luling, Texas |
| OF |
AB Garcia |
HCU |
Jr. |
Cypress, Texas |
| P |
Macie LaRue |
Southeastern |
Jr. |
Lovelady, Texas |
| P |
Maddie Taylor |
McNeese |
Fr. |
Sterlington, La. |
Second Team
| Pos. |
Player |
School |
Year |
Hometown |
| 1B |
Tatum Wright |
East Texas A&M |
Jr. |
Frisco, Texas |
| 2B |
Ellie Vance |
SFA |
Sr. |
Victoria, B.C. |
| SS |
Reese Reyna |
McNeese |
Sr. |
Santa Fe, Texas |
| 3B |
Haylie Savage |
HCU |
Sr. |
Angleton, Texas |
| C |
Adelynn Bacerra |
SFA |
Jr. |
Cypress, Texas |
| UTL |
Molly VandenBout |
Nicholls |
Sr. |
Temple, Texas |
| DP |
Kyi'Marri Ester |
SFA |
So. |
Palestine, Texas |
| OF |
Reagan Heflin |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
Richmond, Texas |
| OF |
Maddie Cason |
East Texas A&M |
Gr. |
Honey Grove, Texas |
| OF |
Nyjah Fontenot |
McNeese |
R So. |
Lake Charles, La. |
| P |
Larissa Jacquez |
UIW |
So. |
Eagle Pass, Texas |
| P |
Britney Lewinski |
Southeastern |
Sr. |
Shorewood, Ill. |
All-Defensive Team
| Pos. |
Player |
School |
Year |
Hometown |
| 1B |
Cala Wilson |
Lamar |
Fr. |
Ruston, La. |
| 2B |
Claire Sisco |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
College Station, Texas |
| SS |
Reese Reyna |
McNeese |
Sr. |
Santa Fe, Texas |
| 3B |
Trinity Brandon |
Lamar |
Jr. |
Las, Vegas, Nev. |
| C |
Jaisy Caceres |
UIW |
So. |
Weslaco, Texas |
| RF |
Reagan Heflin |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
Richmond, Texas |
| CF |
Sophia Livers |
Northwestern State |
So. |
Bossier City, La. |
| LF |
Maddy Bailey |
HCU |
Sr. |
Katy, Texas |
| P |
Maddie Taylor |
McNeese |
Fr. |
Sterlington, La. |