Dickson, Ricketts Finalists for POY

NORMAN, Okla. OU senior Norrelle Dickson and sophomore Samantha Ricketts were named top 10 finalists for the 6th Annual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award, the Amateur Softball Association, the National Governing Body of Softball in the United States, announced Wednesday. For the first time in six years, the top ten finalists actually consist of 11 players after there was a tie for the 10th position.

Dickson was on the preseason watch list for the second straight year while Ricketts joined Dickson on the initial list of 25 finalists earlier this season. They mark the second Sooner pair in history to make the cut of 10. Two years ago, Heather Scaglione and Kristin Vesely were on the list of 10. The only other OU player to make the final 10 was Leah Gulla in 2003. No Sooner has ever made the final list of three.

The Sooners were joined by Tennessee and Arizona State as the only schools with two players on the list.

OU in Big 12 Championship| USA Softball POY

An initial “Watch List” was released on January 30 and the list of 25 finalists was announced on April 4. The USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, in its sixth year, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by NCAA Division I collegiate softball players across the country.

The eleven finalists for the 6th Annual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award, consists of three players who were selected as top 10 finalists in 2006. There are also five seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and one freshman among the list.

Top 11 Finalists listed in alphabetical order are:

Monica Abbott (Tennessee) Senior Pitcher
Katie Burkhart (Arizona State) Junior Pitcher
Kaitlin Cochran (Arizona State) - Sophomore - Outfielder
Norrelle Dickson (Oklahoma) Senior - Third Base
Caitlin Lever (Georgia Tech) - Senior - Outfielder
Caitlin Lowe (Arizona) Senior Outfielder
Samantha Ricketts (Oklahoma) - Sophomore - First Base
Jenn Salling (Oregon) Freshman Shortstop
Amanda Scarborough (Texas A&M) - Junior - Pitcher/First Base
Lindsay Schutzler (Tennessee) Senior Outfielder
Angela Tincher (Virginia Tech) - Junior - Pitcher

On May 29 the list will be cut to three and those final three players will travel to Oklahoma City for the announcement of the winner of the 6th Annual USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year Award during opening ceremonies of the 2007 NCAA Women's College World Series.

A replica of the award will be placed in a permanent display in the ASA National Softball Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, along with photos of the winner. An additional replica of the award will be presented to the player's academic institution during an athletic event in the fall.

Cat Osterman of the University of Texas became the first three-time winner of the National Player of the Year Award in 2006 after leading her Longhorns to the Big 12 regular season title and a berth into the NCAA Women's College World Series. Past winners of the award include Stacey Nuveman (UCLA-2002), Osterman (Texas-2003, 2005, 2006) and Jessica Van der Linden (Florida State-2004).

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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