2019 MIAC SOFTBALL AWARDS

MINNEAPOLIS -- Three Augsburg University softball players earned postseason honors from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference for their accomplishments during the 2019 season, it was announced by the conference office on Monday.

For the fourth straight year, pitcher/infielder Sam Anderson (SR, Coon Rapids, Minn./Coon Rapids HS) earned All-MIAC honors, joining a group of just 23 MIAC players to ever earn all-conference honors all four years of their careers. Shortstop Anesia King (JR, Isanti, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti HS) earned All-MIAC honors for the second straight year, and third baseman Jacquline Nichols (SR, Royalton, Minn./Royalton HS) was named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team, her first conference honor.

Anderson capped her Augsburg career with another record-setting all-around season. In the pitching circle, Anderson set a single-season school record with 186 strikeouts, bringing her career total to 623 -- the fifth pitcher in MIAC softball history to reach the 600-strikeout plateau. Her 186 strikeouts and 8.50 strikeouts per-seven-inning average were both second-most among MIAC pitchers in overall statistics. Among NCAA Division III pitchers nationally, her 186 strikeouts are 11th-most, with her 8.50 per-seven-inning average 18th-most.

In 28 pitching appearances (22 starts, 19 complete games) and 153.2 innings pitched, Anderson finished with a 10-14 record with two shutouts, a save and a 2.82 earned-run average, with 51 walks and a .238 opponent batting average allowed. Her innings pitched total was sixth-best among MIAC pitchers, with her ERA 11th-best.

At the plate, Anderson was one of the top hitters in the MIAC, standing second among conference batters with a .449 (53-of-118) batting average -- the sixth-best batting average in a single season in school history -- while leading the league with a .538 on-base percentage. Her .619 slugging percentage was eighth-best in the MIAC. Her 53 hits were ninth-most among MIAC hitters, with her 23 walks second-most. She also contributed eight doubles, three triples and two home runs, and her 33 RBI were sixth-most among league players. She had a base hit in 31 of her 39 games this season, with 14 multiple-hit games, five multiple-run games and six multiple-RBI games.

Anderson ended her career holding four Augsburg career pitching records -- strikeouts (623), wins (50), pitching appearances (123) and shutouts (13) -- while standing second in school history with 624.0 innings pitched. Her four season strikeout totals -- 186 in 2019, 160 in 2016, 146 in 2017 and 131 in 2018 -- are the top four single-season efforts in school history, and she also shows up 11 other times in single-season pitching record categories.  She finished 50-40 in 123 career pitching appearances (624.0 innings, 77 starts, 68 complete games), with a 2.60 ERA and 623 strikeouts against 179 walks and a .246 opponent batting average. She earned MIAC Pitcher of the Week honors four times in her career.

At the plate in her career, Anderson finished with a .369 career batting average (134-of-363), with 69 runs scored, 28 doubles, six triples, four home runs, 51 walks, 88 RBI, a .512 slugging percentage and .450 on-base percentage, along with a .972 fielding percentage. Her .369 batting average is eighth-best in school history, her 28 doubles are sixth-best, six doubles are 10th-best, 88 RBI are third-best, 186 total bases are 10th best, and her .512 slugging percentage is seventh-best.

King had another solid year for the Auggies, hitting a career-best .407 (44-of-108). She scored a team-best 32 runs and had a team-leading 16 extra-base hits, with eight doubles, six triples and two home runs. Augsburg's leadoff hitter, she had a team-best .648 slugging percentage and .519 on-base percentage, with 21 walks and seven stolen bases, to go along with 19 RBI. She had a base hit in 28 of her 36 games, with 12 multiple-hit games and nine multiple-run games.

Her .407 batting percentage was 12th-best among MIAC players, while her .519 on-base percentage was second-best and her .648 slugging percentage was sixth-best. Her six triples were second-most in the MIAC, while her 21 walks were third-most and her 32 runs scored were ninth-most.

In her three seasons at Augsburg (106 games, 96 starts), she has a .388 career batting average (108-of-278), with 92 runs scored, 17 doubles, 11 triples, five home runs, 50 RBI, 21 stolen bases, 59 walks, a .583 slugging percentage and a .509 on-base percentage. She currently ranks fifth in school history in career batting average, third in slugging percentage, ninth in runs scored, fourth in triples and sixth in walks. Her 10 career times hit-by-pitch is tied for second-most. King also earned Academic All-MIAC and National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III All-America Scholar-Athlete honors last season.

Nichols was named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team, as part of the conference's sportsmanship initiative. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition. 

A four-year starter (150 of 152 games) at third base for the Auggies, Nichols hit .269 (32-of-119) in her senior campaign, the only Auggie to start all 40 games. She scored 18 runs and drove in 27, with eight doubles, a team-best three home runs, a .412 slugging percentage and .338 on-base percentage, with 11 walks and seven stolen bases. She had a base hit in 22 of her 40 games, with eight multiple-hit games and seven multiple-RBI games.

In her Augsburg career, she finished with a .257 career batting average (111-of-432), with 73 runs scored, 26 doubles, a triple, 14 home runs, 79 RBI, 45 walks, 19 stolen bases, a .419 slugging percentage and .336 on-base percentage. Her 14 home runs are third-most in school history, while her 26 doubles are tied for eighth-most and her 79 RBI are tied for fifth-most. A two-time Academic All-MIAC honoree, Nichols earned NFCA Division III All-America Scholar-Athlete honors last season.

Under third-year head coach Melissa Lee, Augsburg finished with a 16-24 overall record and 7-15 conference mark in 2019.