Gutierrez Wins Defensive Player of the Year, Six Blue Demons Receive All-BIG EAST Nods
5/11/2022 12:00:00 PM | SOFTBALL
DePaul earns league-best six All-BIG EAST certificates
CHICAGO — After closing out the regular season 28-22 and earning its 16th-consecutive bid to the BIG EAST Championship, six members of the DePaul softball team earned All-BIG EAST honors on Wednesday.
Shortstop Maranda Gutierrez was selected the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year for the third time in her career. Since being added to the postseason awards in 2018, Gutierrez has picked up the conference's top defensive honor in three of the four seasons it's been awarded.
DePaul has a pair of players on the first team and four more on the second team, the most across both teams in the conference.
Graduate student Kate Polucha and junior Brooke Johnson landed on the first team while Gutierrez joined graduate student Sarah Lehman, junior Tori Meyer and freshman Anna Wohlers on the second team.
The Blue Demons have garnered 17 all-conference honorees in head Coach Tracie Adix-Zins' four seasons and a total of 42 since BIG EAST reconfiguration in 2014. This is the fourth time that Polucha and Gutierrez have earned All-BIG EAST distinction, second for Johnson and first time for Lehman, Meyer and Wohlers.
Polucha capped her storied career with a stellar fifth-year campaign, ranking fifth in the league in average (.418), third in slugging (.785), second in hits (33) and tied for first in RBI (26) in 24 league games. The left fielder from Laguna Niguel, Calif. turned it up in conference play, launching a league-best seven home runs, after missing a portion of non-conference action due to injury. The 2018 BIG EAST Freshman of the Year and two-time All-Tournament team selection is two hits away from 200 on her career and holds a .307 batting average in five seasons.
Johnson was a force to be reckoned with in the Blue Demons lineup en route to collecting All-BIG EAST honors for the second consecutive season. The junior first baseman boasted a .373 average in conference games while totaling 25 hits, 14 of which were for an extra-base hit, and driving in 24 runs. Opposing pitching staffs often chose to work around the three-hole hitter as Johnson drew a league-best 22 walks. Johnson's power lifted seven balls out of the park across 24 conference games, tied for first in the league with teammates Polucha and Wohlers and UConn's Briana Marcelino. Johnson was rock solid at first base with 126 putouts and three assists while committing just one error.
Gutierrez maintained her status as one of the leagues top players after earning her fourth all-conference honor in her fifth season. The shortstop spearheaded the Blue Demons defensive unit en route to a team fielding percentage of .970 in conference play. The Whittier, Calif native recorded 38 putouts and assisted 36 times with only three errors for a .961 fielding clip. Gutierrez helped initiate four double plays in conference play. Behind the plate, Gutierrez totaled a .500 on-base percentage and a .319 batting average in conference games. Gutierrez crossed the plate a team-best 25 times while also drawing 17 walks and being hit by pitch on nine occasions. Speedy on the base paths, Gutierrez was a perfect eight-for-eight on stolen bases.
Lehman claimed her first All-BIG EAST recognition in her first season in the royal blue and scarlet after going 9-1 in the circle in conference games. The right-hander held opponents to a .199 batting average while owning a 2.49 ERA. In 81.2 innings of work in 16 appearances, Lehman struck out 84 batters to 35 walks. Lehman's nine league wins ranks third amongst the league's pitchers. The Iowa City, Iowa native recorded five or more strikeouts in 10 league games in 2022.
Meyer had a breakout junior campaign for the Blue Demons and elevated her production in the lineup while being a stalwart member of the outfield, starting in 23 of 24 conference games in right field. The Barrington, Ill. native recorded a .389 batting average in BIG EAST play, good for second on the team. Meyer tied for a team-high seven doubles while punching through a pair of triples and notching four home runs. A stout base runner, Meyer was a perfect 5-for-5 on stolen base attempts and crossed the plate on 21 occasions. The junior closed out the regular season strong with a five-for-11 performance at Providence which included four RBI, three of which came in the 10-inning series finale victory.
Wohlers made an immediate impact in her first collegiate season. The freshman from Davenport, Iowa was a mainstay in the cleanup spot for the Blue Demons and split time between third base and catcher on defense. The left-handed power hitter owned a .324 average in BIG EAST play while slugging .770 to rank fourth in the league. Wohlers drove in 23 RBI on 24 hits including 16 extra-base hits and a league-best three triples. Wohlers ended the regular season with a bang after lifting the Blue Demons to a 5-4 10-inning victory over Providence with a solo home run, her eighth of the season, on Sunday, May 8.
DePaul will kick off the 2022 BIG EAST Championship on Thursday, May 12 with a matchup against top-seeded Connecticut scheduled for an 11 a.m. CT at the Ballpark at Rosemont.
2022 BIG EAST Softball Awards
BIG EAST Player of the Year
Kailey Wilson, Creighton, Jr., DP
BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year
Alyssa Graves, Butler, Gr.*
BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Maranda Gutierrez, DePaul, Gr., SS
BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Taylor Hill, Seton Hall, Fr., SS
BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
UConn
All-BIG EAST First Team
Lauren Fey, Butler, Sr., 2B
Alyssa Graves, Butler, Gr., P*
Sami Barnett, UConn, R-Sr., IF
Briana Marcelino, UConn, Gr., IF
Elise Sokolsky, UConn, Fr., P*
Kailey Wilson, Creighton, Jr., DP*
Brooke Johnson, DePaul, Jr., 1B
Kate Polucha, DePaul, Gr., LF
London Jarrard, St. John's, Fr., SS
Taylor Hill, Seton Hall, Fr., SS
Megan Kern, Villanova, Sr., SS
Paige Rauch, Villanova, Gr., P
All-BIG EAST Second Team
Bri Avery, Butler, Sr., OF
Reese Guevarra, UConn, Gr., OF
Alexis Hastings, UConn, Fr., OF
Maranda Gutierrez, DePaul, Gr., SS
Sarah Lehman, DePaul, Gr., P
Tori Meyer, DePaul, Jr., RF
Anna Wohlers, DePaul, Fr., 3B
Mae Forshey, Georgetown, Sr., C
Jacque Harrington, Providence, So., C/UTIL
Ashly Colonnetta, Seton Hall, Jr., 2B
Shelby Smith, Seton Hall, Jr., P
Chloe Smith, Villanova, Jr., 3B
*unanimous selection
