OU Sends Eight to All-Region Teams

NORMAN – The Oklahoma softball program tied a school record by having all eight of its nominees named to the 2015 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division I All-Central Region Team, including five first-team honorees, the NFCA announced Thursday.

Seniors Lauren Chamberlain and Shelby Pendley were joined by junior Erin Miller and freshmen Kelsey Arnold and Paige Parker on the All-Region First Team. In addition, juniors Whitney Ellis and Kady Self and freshman Nicole Pendley were all placed on the All-Region Second Team.

It marks the second straight season that OU had eight selections. The only other schools to have eight All-Region choices were Michigan and Oregon. Oklahoma's five first-team honorees tied for third in the country with James Madison and LSU, trailing only Michigan (7) and Oregon (6). The five first-team selections also tied a school record for Oklahoma, matching the mark set by the 2005 and 2007 squads.

With her place on the first team, Chamberlain joins Norrelle Dickson, Amber Flores and Keilani Ricketts as the only four-time first-team All-Region players in school history. Chamberlain has hit .398 on the year with 19 home runs, 66 runs scored and 58 runs driven in. She ranks second in the country with a slugging percentage of .984, is third with 1.32 runs scored per game and is sixth with an on-base percentage of .602.

The 2015 Big 12 Player of the Year, Shelby Pendley is a first-team pick for the second straight season after earning second team honors in 2013. She is among the top hitters in the country, ranking second in home runs per game (0.50), fourth in slugging (1.036) and fifth in home runs (24), runs per game (1.27) and RBI per game (1.35). In addition to her success at the plate, Pendley has recorded a 2.33 earned run average and 64 strikeouts in 63.0 innings for a 12-1 record in the circle.

Miller has earned the first All-Region honor of her career after setting career highs in nearly every offensive category. Recently named to her first All-Big 12 First Team, the Tulsa, Okla., native leads the team with six triples and nine stolen bases and is second in hits (56) and third in runs scored (51), runs batted in (50), batting average (.409) and slugging percentage (.708).

Arnold and Parker become the first freshman teammates at OU to be named first-team All-Region since Chamberlain and Georgia Casey did it in 2012.

A native of Tulsa, Okla., Arnold hit .317 during the regular season with a .383 on-base percentage and .417 slugging percentage. Playing in all 52 games with 51 starts, including 45 at third base, Arnold scored 37 runs, drove in 21 runs and had three home runs, four doubles and a triple. Defensively, she's committed just one error in 126 chances while splitting time between third base and second base.

The 2015 Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and Big 12 co-Freshman of the Year, Parker has been OU's ace in the circle, going 24-5 with a 1.45 earned run average. She's struck out 199 in 179.0 and issued just 42 walks. She has thrown four perfect games this season, tying the NCAA Division I record. At the plate, Parker ranks second on the team with a .418 average, while her nine home runs and .533 on-base percentage both rank third on the squad.

Ellis has earned All-Region Second Team honors for the second straight season. While she's been productive at the plate with a .314 average, 24 runs batted and three home runs, Ellis' greatest value has come behind the plate. She has thrown out seven of 11 would-be basestealers this season, and the Sooners have allowed the fewest stolen bases of any team in the country with just four.

In her first season back after tearing her ACL, Self picked up where she left off to claim second-team honors after claiming first-team honors a year ago. She hit .406 during the regular season, tying for third on the team with nine home runs. Self added 42 runs scored, seven doubles, a triple, 42 RBI and 22 walks during the year while notching a .688 slugging percentage and OBP of .490.

With Arnold and Parker on the first team and Nicole Pendley on the second team, OU has three freshman All-Region honorees for the first time in program history. Pendley, who has played in all 52 games with 50 starts in center field, has spent a good portion of the season as the team's leadoff hitter. She's posted a .372 batting average to go along with a .572 slugging percentage and .459 OBP. She has 49 runs scored, eight doubles and two triples and has recorded three outfield assists.

The awards honor softball student-athletes from the Association's 10 regions with first, second and third teams selected for each region. The all-region teams were voted on by NFCA member coaches from each respective region, and all the honorees now become eligible for selection to one of three 2015 NFCA Division I All-American teams.

The 2015 NFCA Division I All-America teams will be announced at approximately 4 p.m. CT on Wednesday, May 28, via NFCA.org.

Players Mentioned

Kelsey Arnold

Georgia Casey

Lauren Chamberlain

Lauren Chamberlain

Erin Miller

Paige Parker

Nicole Pendley

Shelby Pendley

Shelby Pendley

Kady Self

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics