Wingate, Mars Hill Have Student-Athletes on Academic All-District Softball Team

Wingate, N.C.----Six Wingate University softball student-athletes have been named to the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III softball second team (college division), selected by CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America). Wingate was the only school from the Carolinas with multiple selections. Mars Hill College, UNC Pembroke and USC Aiken had one selection each on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III softball teams.

For Wingate, position players Mandi Chester, Sarah Carleton, Megan McPhail and Grace Cunningham were honored. Pitcher Ashley Green and designated player Courtney Wagner joined the aforementioned foursome on the Academic All-District III softball second team. Chester, Carleton, Cunningham and McPhail achieved an athletic/academic double-double this week, as they earned Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association NCAA Division II All-South Atlantic Region team honors on Thursday.

Katie Bryden of Mars Hill was also named. Bryden is a 5-10, junior pitcher/outfielder from British Columbia, Canada. A Business Administration Major, Bryden was third on the team in batting average (.313) and RBI (29), second in runs scored (38), homeruns (9) and stolen bases (9-13).

Senior first baseman Sarah Carleton (Powhatan, Va.) is a repeat selection, as she earned second team honors in 2005. District III (college division) includes all non-NCAA Division I schools (Division II, III and NAIA) in Florida, Georgia, Virginia and North and South Carolina. The 11 first team selections move on to the national ballot for 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® honors.

Carleton is a four-year starter for the Bulldogs. She possesses a 3.21 GPA in Human Services. Entering Friday's game against number 11 Georgia College & State, she shares the Wingate single season home run record with 14. Carleton has 63 RBI, 54 runs and 13 doubles. At one point this season, she reached base safely in 20 straight games.

Carleton is a three-time All-SAC selection. She leads the team with 19 multiple RBI games. In addition, she has notched 20 multiple hit games. She is third on the team with a .404 batting average. She is slugging an incredible .737. For her career, she is hitting .384 with 29 home runs and 164 RBI.

Junior catcher Mandi Chester (Charlotte, N.C.) is the 2006 South Atlantic Conference Scholar-Athlete Award winner for softball. She possesses a 3.64 GPA in Mathematics and Science Education. Chester is hitting .394 with 14 home runs and 51 RBI. Chester has 20 multiple hit games and 15 multiple RBI games this year.

Chester hit two runs in Wingate's 3-1 win over Carson-Newman Thursday, tying her for the school record for home runs in a season with 14. A first team All-SAC pick in 2006, Chester is third on the team in doubles (12), RBI (51) and total bases (117). She is second on the team charts in slugging percentage (.731). Chester won the Herschel "Red" and Mary B. Edwards Scholarship Award at Wingate's recent athletic awards ceremony.

Junior second basemen Megan McPhail (Wade, N.C.) earned first team All-SAC and first team All-South Atlantic Region honors in 2005 and 2006. McPhail holds a 3.64 GPA in her Sociology major. This year, she is hitting .380 with 29 RBI, 35 runs and 14 doubles.

The team leader in doubles, McPhail connected on her first career home run during the 2006 season. She is also a perfect 10-for-10 in stolen bases. A three-year starter, McPhail hit a team-best .421 with runners in scoring position in 2005.

Senior shortstop Grace Cunningham (Camden, S.C.) is batting .412 in 2006, second on the team charts. Her 64 RBI this season are a school-record. Cunningham possesses a 3.43 GPA in English and Education. She is a four-time All-SAC selection and a two-time Food Lion SAC All-Tournament team member.

Cunningham had a 17-game hitting streak during the season. She had two games when she recorded five RBI and three games in which she drove in four runs. In addition, she leads the team with 24 multiple hit games. Cunningham also recorded 18 multiple RBI games. Cunningham has a solid .360 career batting average. She has 22 career home runs and 124 career RBI for the Bulldogs.

Junior pitcher Ashley Green (Charleston, S.C.) was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2006 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference softball tournament, pitching four games on the final day to lead the Bulldogs to the tournament championship. Green has a 3.73 GPA in her Physical Education major.

A two-time All-SAC choice, Green won five games in the tournament, compiling a 5-1 record and a 0.37 ERA. She tossed two shutouts, allowing only 17 hits in 38 innings of work. Green hurled a three-hitter in the second championship game to help Wingate claim the title. She struck out 26 batters, holding her opponents to a .133 tournament batting average.

Entering Friday's regional play, Green is 26-6 overall with a sterling 1.33 ERA. She has 165 strikeouts (and only 31 walks) in 178 1/3 innings of work. Green has 20 complete games and eight shutouts on the season.

Sophomore designated player Courtney Wagner (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) has improved her 2006 batting average 108 points over her 2005 batting average. She is a stellar student with a 3.53 GPA in Communication Studies.

This season, Wagner is hitting .324 with five doubles and 35 RBI. She has 11 multiple hit games and 10 multiple RBI games. She played a crucial role in the Bulldogs' 3-0 Food Lion SAC tournament championship game victory over Lenoir-Rhyne. Wagner moved to third base after an injury to freshman starter Hallie Pettigrew (Uniontown, Ohio) and helped lead the Bulldogs to the title.

Student-athletes selected for Academic All-District honors must be a starter or important reserve with legitimate athletic credentials. She must possess at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.00 scale). She must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing and must have completed at least one full academic year at her institution.