Seven Cougars Decorated with All-CAA Accolades

RICHMOND, Va. – Rebecca Mueller, Taylor DuPree, Valerie Cassell, and Samantha Martin, each were named to the All-CAA Second Team, while freshmen Kelly Sinclair and Madison Brown were named to the CAA All-Rookie team, and Chandler Frisbie picked up a spot on the All-Academic team.

“Each of them are extremely deserving of this recognition,” Head coach Linda Kalafatis said. “I've seen the kind of work that they all have put in over the last year, and it's great to see that hard work show on the field, and be recognized by other coaches in our conference.”

With seven student-athletes earning All-CAA accolades, The Cougars are tied with James Madison for the highest number of student-athletes to be named to All-CAA status in 2016.

Sophomore standout Taylor DuPree's Second Team nod is her third All-CAA award, as she was named to the All-CAA First Team and All-Rookie Team in 2015. Her 69 hits leads the CAA, she is second in stolen bases with 27, third in runs scored with 42, third in triples with three, fourth in batting average (.390), and ninth in on-base percentage (.447). DuPree is also nationally ranked as the 33^rd most difficult player to strikeout, as she has only seven strikeouts in 177 at-bats. The native of Evans, Georgia, has made a mark in the CofC record book as well with the third-highest batting average in a single season, the seventh-highest on-base percentage, the sixth-highest number of hits, and the most stolen bases in a single season.

Senior outfielder Rebecca Mueller earned a Second-Team nod for the second time in her career. She also picked up an All-SoCon Freshman team spot back in 2013. Mueller's .372 batting average is the sixth highest in the CAA this season, and her 61 hits are the fourth highest. She is also in the top-10 in RBI and doubles. The Fair Oaks, California native found her way into the CofC softball record book this season as well, with the fifth highest batting average in program history.

Senior pitcher/utility player Valerie Cassell picked up her first All-CAA accolade with a place on the Second Team. Cassell is tied for the 12^th most walks-drawn in the CAA this season as a batter, and lead the CAA with the least hits allowed (46) by a pitcher with an average of at least one inning pitched per game. She has allowed the third-fewest earned runs in the CAA, and the fourth fewest walks as well. The Edison, New Jersey native also has the fifth-lowest opponent batting average at .225. She also made her mark in the field as well, with a .994 fielding percentage, the fifth highest mark in the CAA, and the 10^th highest percentage in CofC history. Cassell earned the CAA Player of the Week award for the week on Feb. 23- March 1.

Junior pitcher Samantha Martin rounds out the list of Cougars to earn All-CAA Second Team honors, as she put together one of the finest pitching seasons in Charleston's history. She has been one of the most consistent and dominant pitchers in the Colonial Athletic Association with the fourth most wins this season with 16, the third most complete games thrown at 14, the third most innings pitched (161.1), the seventh-lowest earned run average at 2.39, the fifth most strikeouts with 114, and the fourth lowest opponent batting average at .218. The native of Tallahassee, Florida in now in the top-10 in CofC history for lowest opponent batting average and most games started (32). This is the second time in her career that Martin has earned All-CAA honors, as she was named to the All-CAA Rookie Team in 2014. Martin has twice been named the CAA Pitcher of the week in 2016 as well.

Freshman shortstop Kelly Sinclair earned a spot on the All-Rookie Team after an impressive season that saw her start 53 of the 54 games that the Cougars have played. She is fourth on the team, and 34^th in the conference in batting average (.289), and second on the team/10^th in the CAA in stolen bases with 10. The native or Marietta, Georgia, has 80 assists this season, the ninth most in the CAA. Sinclair has twice been named the CAA Rookie of the Week in 2016.

Freshman outfielder Madison Brown also picked up a spot in the All-Rookie Team for her efforts this season. She batted for a .276 average over the course of 37 games the she appeared in, with 24 starts. She recorded 42 putouts, good for a .978 fielding percentage, and only had one error. The native of Irmo, S.C. was named the CAA Rookie of the Week for the week of April 11 - April 18.

Senior first basemen Chandler Frisbie earned a spot on the All-CAA Academic Team for the Cougars. She graduated with honors, Cum Laude, with a degree in International Studies, and also played an important role on the field for The College. She hit for a .232 average with three doubles and 10 RBI, despite missing a solid portion of the season due to injury. She lead the Cougars will 180 putouts, and managed a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage, tying her for the highest mark in CofC history. Frisbie hails from Lawrenceville, Georgia, and now has 1308 career putouts, one of the highest totals by a CofC softball player. This honor is the second of her career, as she was named to the All-SoCon Freshman team back in 2013 as well.

The Cougars have earned the No. 3 seed in the CAA tournament thanks to their 33-21, 11-9 record this season. They will face the No. 2 seed, Towson, on Wednesday, May 11 at Noon. The schedule from there depends on the result of the first game, as they will face No. 1 seed, James Madison if they win, or they will face the winner of the game between No. 4 Elon and No. 5 Delaware if they lose to Towson.

Live video from each of the games this week can be found at CAA.tv, and live stats can be found at the CAA's live stats page at http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/central.php?tid=245. For up to the minute details, follow the College of Charleston softball team on Twitter at @CofCSoftball, of head over to CofCSports.com.

2016 All-CAA Softball Teams

First Team
Name	School	Year	Position	Hometown
Erica Field	James Madison	Sr.	C	Manassas, Va.
Holiday Cahill	Towson	Jr.	1B	Cypress, Calif.
Madyson Moran	James Madison	Jr.	2B	Taylor Hill, Ky.
Brook Miko	Towson	So.	SS	Ladera Ranch, Calif.
Paula Ueno	Drexel	Sr.	3B	Sao Paolo, Brazil
Chloe Fitzgerald	Hofstra	Sr.	OF	Prince Frederick, Md.
Brielle Pietrafesa	Hofstra	So.	OF	Pennsauken, N.J.
Kara Shutt	Elon	So.	OF	Greensboro, N.C.
Mariah Kondravy	Delaware	So.	DP/UTIL/NP	Bethlehem, Pa.
Jailyn Ford	James Madison	Sr.	UTIL/P	Hot Springs, Va.
Megan Good	James Madison	So.	P	Mount Sidney, Va.
Ambar Hickman	Towson	Sr.	P	La Mirada, Calif.

Second Team
Name	School	Year	Position	Hometown
Anna Steinmetz	Delaware	Fr.	C	Glen Mills, Pa.
Shelby Stracher	Towson	So.	C	Dudley, Mass.
Nikki Michalowski	Hofstra	So.	1B	Philadelphia, Pa.
Lacey Clark	Hofstra	Jr.	2B	Victor, N.Y.
Leanna Gearhart	Delaware	So.	SS	Robbinsville, N.J.
Morgan Tolle	James Madison	So.	3B	Hudson, Fla.
Gabby Klecko	Delaware	Sr.	OF	Colts Neck, N.J.
Rebecca Mueller	Coll. of Charleston	Sr.	OF	Fair Oaks, Calif.
Taylor Newton	James Madison	Jr.	OF	Bradenton, Fla.
Merritt Wilkinson	UNCW	Jr.	OF	Burlington, N.C.
Taylor DuPree	Coll. of Charleston	So.	DP/UTIL/NP	Evans, Ga.
Valerie Cassell	Coll. of Charleston	Sr.	UTIL/P	Edison, N.J.
Peyton Jordan	UNCW	Jr.	P	Waxhaw, N.C.
Kayla Caruso	Elon	Sr.	P	Kennesaw, Ga.
Samantha Martin	Coll. of Charleston	Jr.	P	Tallahassee, Fla.

All-Rookie Team
Name	School	Year	Position	Hometown
Hannah Adamczyk	UNCW	Fr.	3B	Indian Trail, N.C.
Madison Ambush	Hofstra	Fr.	C/INF	New Market, Md.
Madison Brown	Coll. of Charleston	Fr.	OF	Irmo, S.C.
Jenelle Ladrido	Drexel	Fr.	OF	Chula Vista, Calif.
Haley Lenderman	UNCW	Fr.	P	Rochester Hills, Mich.
Erica Serafini	Elon	Fr.	INF/OF	Tampa, Fla.
Kelly Sinclair	Coll. of Charleston	Fr.	INF	Marietta, Ga.
Anna Steinmetz	Delaware	Fr.	C	Glenn Mills, Pa.
Elise Walton	Elon	Fr.	P/OF	Lawrenceville, Va.
Rachel Willis	UNCW	Fr.	UTIL	Angier, N.C.

2016 CAA Player of the Year: Jailyn Ford, James Madison

2016 CAA Pitcher of the Year: Megan Good, James Madison

2016 CAA Defensive Player of the Year: Erica Field, James Madison

2016 CAA Rookie of the Year: Anna Steinmetz, Delaware

2016 CAA Coach of the Year: Mickey Dean, James Madison

All-Academic Team
Name	School	Year	Position	Hometown
Chandler Frisbie	Coll. of Charleston	Sr.	1B	Lawrenceville, Ga.
Leanna Gearhart	Delaware	So.	INF	Robbinsville, N.J.
Lindsey Gibbs	Drexel	Jr.	P	Philadelphia, Pa.
Lauren Moore	UNCW	Jr.	INF	Farmville, Va.
Emily Roper	Elon	Jr.	C/3B	Cincinnati, Ohio
Ashley Samuels	James Madison	So.	UTIL	Doswell, Va.
Kim Smith	Hofstra	Sr.	INF	Georgetown, Del.
Olivia Yarbrough	Towson	Sr.	OF	Keizer, Ore.

-www.CofCSports.com-

Schedule

Players Mentioned

Madi Brown

Valerie Cassell

Taylor DuPree

Chandler Frisbie

Sam Martin

Rebecca Mueller

Kelly Sinclair

Footer

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Softball at Coastal Carolina on Apr. 8, 2026 at 6:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Coastal Carolina on Apr. 14, 2026 at 6:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Softball at Hampton on Apr. 17, 2026 at 3:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Softball at Hampton on Apr. 18, 2026 at 3:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Softball at Hampton on Apr. 19, 2026 at 1:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Charleston Southern on Apr. 22, 2026 at 3:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Charleston Southern on Apr. 22, 2026 at 5:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Softball versus UNCW on Apr. 24, 2026 at 5:00 PM