Four Polar Bears named First Team All-Central Region in Softball for 2012 by National Fastpitch Coaches Association
By Tim Glon
ADA — Ohio Northern senior Kimi Blewett and sophomore Christin Miller were named First Team All-Central Region in softball for 2012 in voting conducted by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.
Senior Cassie Gaye was a Second Team All-Region honoree, while freshman Kelly Sheridan was a Third Team selection.
As First Team All-Region honorees, Blewett and Miller are now on the All-America ballot. The All-America team will be announced on Thursday at the NCAA III World Series in Salem, Va.
Blewett is now a four-time First Team All-Region and First Team All-Ohio Athletic Conference award winner and was named Second Team All-America in 2010.
She has started 163 games at catcher in her four seasons at ONU, and is currently the school's all-time career leader in RBI (210) and doubles (50) and is second in base hits (224) and home runs (42).
This season, Blewett is batting .371 and leads the OAC with 12 home runs and has a team-best 45 RBI.
She was also named to the 2012, 2010 and 2009 NCAA Regional All-Tournament Teams.
Miller is making her second appearance on the All-Region squad after receiving Third Team All-Region honors as a freshman in 2011 and is also a two-time First Team All-Conference honoree.
This season, Miller leads the team with a .447 batting average and has tied the school's single-season record with 76 base hits.
In two seasons at ONU, Miller has started 92 games in center field and currently ranks 10th all-time with 146 career base hits and is tied for ninth with 100 runs scored.
Gaye is batting .407 this year in 43 games at third base with 6 home runs and 34 RBI.
She ranks tenth all-time at ONU with 150 career base hits and is fourth all-time with 15 career home runs.
A career .380 hitter, Gaye is also a two-time All-Conference honoree.
Sheridan is hitting .377 in 43 games in the outfield with five home runs, 43 RBI and an ONU single-season record 21 doubles in her rookie season.
The No. 25-ranked Polar Bears won the NCAA Division III Alma (Mich.) Regional tournament and will play in the 2012 NCAA Division III World Series Friday-Tuesday at Salem, Va.
Ohio Northern will face No. 3-ranked Linfield (Ore.) in the first round Friday at 11 am and will play either No. 4 Pacific Lutheran (Wash.) or No. 6 Luther (Iowa) on Saturday at either 11 am or 4 pm in the double-elimination tournament.
The trip to the Woerld Series is the second in four seasons for the Polar Bears, who are also making their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and their ninth appearance overall.