Four Belles Earn All-MIAA Honors, Young Repeats as MIAA MVP

• Cassie Young was named MIAA Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season.
• Cassie Young, Jamie Young, and Morgan Raymer were First Team All-MIAA honorees.
• Makenzie Duncan earned Second Team All-MIAA recognition.

FREELAND, Mich. - Four Saint Mary's softball student-athletes were recognized with All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association accolades, making it the fourth instance the program has received as many honors on the all-league list.

Cassie Young, Jamie Young, and Morgan Raymer were all named First Team All-MIAA, and Makenzie Duncan earned Second Team All-MIAA honors for the 2017 season. The Belles previously had four All-MIAA honorees in 2004, 2006, and 2012. This season, however, marks the first time for the program that three student-athletes were selected as first team honorees.

Cassie Young repeated as the MIAA Most Valuable Player. The award was expanded in 2007 to recognize both a position player and a pitcher, and Young is the first position player since that expansion to earn the honor multiple times. A junior outfielder for the Belles, she led the conference in batting average for the second consecutive season with a .500 average. A two-time MIAA Player of the Week this spring, she had multiple hits in eight of 16 league games and was among the top ten in conference play in runs scored, doubles, triples, RBI, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage. Defensively, Young boasted a 1.000 fielding percentage with 25 putouts and no errors as the Belles' starting center fielder. It is the third overall All-MIAA honor of her career as she was a First Team selection in 2016 and a Second Team honoree in 2015.

Jamie Young was one of only four infielders to earn First Team All-MIAA accolades in 2017, marking the second consecutive season she has earned first team honors. The junior shortstop led the conference in total hits (28) while collecting at least one hit in every MIAA game of the season. She was the only player to post a hit in each conference game this spring. Additionally, she posted multiple hits in nine of the 16 conference games of the year. Young was in the top ten among MIAA players in runs scored, doubles, and on-base percentage while posting the eleventh-best slugging percentage. On defense, she had a .961 fielding percentage with 26 putouts and 23 assists at shortstop. It is the third overall All-MIAA accolade of her career as she was also a First Team honoree in 2016 and a Second Team selection in 2015.

Morgan Raymer picked up First Team All-MIAA honors for the first time in her career after being a Second Team selection last season. A junior pitcher, she was tied for the most league wins in 2017 with nine victories in the circle. She was second in innings pitched, third in ERA, and fifth in total strikeouts. She did not allow an earned run in eight consecutive appearances to open the season and was a two-time MIAA Pitcher of the Week. Opponents had just a .188 batting average against Raymer in league play through the 2017 season. At the plate, she posted a .325 batting average with a .500 slugging percentage while being tied for the sixth-most doubles on the season. She had a hit in 10 of 16 games with 10 runs scored.

Makenzie Duncan picked up her first all-conference honor of her collegiate career after being named Second Team All-MIAA. A junior outfielder, she had a hit in 15 of 16 league games while posting a .468 batting average in league play. Additionally, she collected multiple hits in six contests and drove in multiple runs on five occasions. She was tied for the league lead in triples, tied for fifth in total hits, and was in the top ten in RBI, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage. On defense, Duncan had a 1.000 fielding percentage with 23 putouts and an assist as the team's starting right fielder.

It is the third consecutive season the Saint Mary's softball program has garnered multiple All-MIAA honors. Additionally, it is the eighth time in program history the Belles have had multiple First Team student-athletes. A member of the Saint Mary's softball program has been recognized with all-conference honors each year since joining the MIAA in the 1997-98 academic year.

2017 All-MIAA Softball Honors
Most Valuable Pitcher
Sydney Jones, Hope

Most Valuable Player
Cassie Young, Saint Mary’s

First Team All-MIAA
Sammi Adams, Hope, OF
Mary Brooks, Alma, OF
Kaylee Fox, Trine, 1B/C
Anna Gernant, Calvin, P
Sydney Jones, Hope, P
Danielle Ray, Trine, P
Morgan Raymer, Saint Mary's, P
Hayley Reitsma, Hope, Utility
Danielle Service, Alma, C/Utility
Morgan Stratton, Alma, P
Cassie Young, Saint Mary's, OF
Jamie Young, Saint Mary's, IF

Second Team All-MIAA
Sierra Mutschler, Hope, IF
Maddie DeGroot, Calvin, IF
Erin DuRoss, Kalamazoo, P/OF
Michaela Hartline, Trine, OF
Makenzie Duncan, Saint Mary's, OF
Catherine Porter, Trine, C
Anna Couture, Alma, IF
Chelsea Schweiger, Alma, OF
Taylor Smith, Olivet, IF
Makenna Hartline, Trine, IF
Claire Ryan, Trine, IF
Riley Terwilliger, Alma, IF