Heidelbauer named A-R-C Position Player of the Year; headlines eight Storm to all-conference team

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - After claiming a share of the regular season conference title, the Simpson softball team landed eight players on the A-R-C all-conference teams, highlighted by Megan Heidelbauer winning the conference Position Player of the Year award, and the Storm being named the Coaching Staff of the Year.

Heidelbauer became the first Storm position player to be named the conference Player of the Year in program history, and the first player to receive a major award since Whitney Oviatt in 2010. Also for the first time since 2010, the Storm coaching staff, led by Brent Mathias, was named the conference's top coaching staff.

Megan Heidelbauer, A-R-C Position Player of the Year/First Team All-Conference

• Junior first baseman from Marion, Iowa
• Slashed .515/.573/1.053 on the season with 15 home runs and 66 RBIs over 38 games
• Broke the school record for most RBIs (66), and hits (68) in a single season
• Led the conference in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, hits, runs batted in, triples, and home runs
• Finished with 14 doubles, tied second most in the conference
• Was perfect on the base path with 15 stolen bases and zero caught stealing
• Over 132 at-bats, struck out only seven times while recording 11 walks
• Finished second on the team and third overall in conference with 51 runs scored
• Hit the game-winning walk-off home run in an 11-inning affair with UW-Platteville in April
• Was named the A-R-C Player of the Week on March 24 after slugging over .500 with five home runs and 17 runs driven in
• Named mid-season to the NFCA Division III Pitcher and Player of the Year watchlist

Ashlyn Steen, First Team All-Conference

• Junior center fielder from Mount Vernon, Iowa
• Batted .457/.533/.713 on the season with five home runs and 31 RBIs over 38 games
• Led the conference in runs scored, breaking the school record with 59 runs
• Finished second in conference in batting average and slugging percentage and was third in on-base and hits with 59
• Led the team with 24 stolen bases on the season, placing second overall in conference
• Collected 10 doubles, and four triples while only striking out nine times and recording 14 walks on the year
• Was named the A-R-C Player of the Week on April 21 after hitting 13-for-20 with two home runs and 11 RBIs on the week
• Finished with four outfield assists and 39 putouts in center

Alexis Ehlers, First Team All-Conference

• Senior shortstop from Bryant, Iowa
• Batted .330/.440/.643 on the year with eight home runs and 34 RBIs in 38 games
• Her eight home runs were second most in the conference and was third overall in RBIs
• Finished fifth in conference in slugging and doubles (11) along with 10th in OPS (1.083)
• Collected 12 stolen bases with zero caught attempts along with 22 walks to only 14 strikeouts
• Tied for third on the team with 32 runs scored
• Recorded 87 assists with 64 putouts and was apart of 12 double plays up the middle

Kate Kriegel, First Team All-Conference

• Senior second baseman from Grinnell, Iowa
• Finished the year with a .298/.459/.631 batting line with seven home runs and 28 RBIs in 36 games
• Ranked seventh in the conference in slugging percentage and eighth in OPS (1.090)
• Her seven home runs was tied for fifth most in the league
• Tied for the lead the A-R-C in walks with 26
• Finished with 32 runs scored, five doubles, one triple, and five stolen bases
• Recorded 60 assists and 64 putouts with 11 double plays at second

Katie Shaner, Second Team All-Conference

• Sophomore right fielder from West Des Moines, Iowa
• Batted .373/.454/.637 with three home runs and 24 RBIs in 37 games
• Placed sixth in conference in slugging and seventh in OPS (1.091)
• Her 14 doubles where tied for second most in the conference
• Scored 16 runs and hit for two triples while walking 15 times
• Collected 38 hits on the season over 102 at-bats
• Was named the A-R-C Player of the Week on April 14 after hitting .643 over four games with two home runs, five RBIs and 17 total bases
• Recorded two outfield assists with 39 putouts

Emma LaFave, Second Team All-Conference

• Junior pitcher from Clive, Iowa
• Finished the year with an 11-2 record and a 2.69 ERA over 18 games
• Pitched a team-high 80.2 innings with six complete games on 15 starts
• Struck out a team-high 59 batters, sixth most in the league with 21 caught looking
• Placed second in the conference with a .244 opponent batting average
• Fielded her position with 14 assists, and started one doubleplay

Caelynn Obleton, Second Team All-Conference

• Junior third baseman from Marion, Iowa
• Batted .295/.388/.400 on the season with seven extra base hits and eight RBIs over 38 games
• Was a perfect 20-for-20 in the stolen base column
• Tied for second most on the team in triples with four
• Collected 31 hits and 30 runs scored along with 15 walks
• Led the team with 92 assists with 23 putouts while assisting with seven doubleplays

Mackenzie James, Second Team All-Conference

• Sophomore left fielder from Ankeny, Iowa
• Finished with a .380/.434/.463 slash line with 30 RBIs and eight extra base hits
• Her 30 RBIs ranked tenth best in the conference
• Stole eight out of nine bases with 13 walks on the season to only eight strikeouts
• Over 121 at-bats, collected 46 hits with 26 runs scored, six doubles, and two triples
• Gloved three outfield assists with 40 putouts and was apart of one doubleplay

Brent Matthias, A-R-C Coaching Staff of the Year

• Led the Storm to a 31-7 record overall on the season
• Clinched a share of the regular season conference title with a 11-5 record
• Broke the school record in runs scored (301), home runs (46), runs batted in (267)
• Featured the A-R-C top offense in nearly every offensive category along with the second lowest ERA
• Became the first A-R-C Coaching Staff of the Year award for Simpson since 2010