Tuesday, May 09, 2006

MACON, Ga. (May 9, 2006) - Freshman Mary Catherine Vercoe (Signal Mountain, Tenn.) has been named to the Atlantic Sun All-Freshmen Team, announced by conference offices on Tuesday.  Vercoe, who has played in 53 of the Lady Bucs' 54 games this season, has emerged as both a top hitter and pitcher during her rookie campaign.

On the mound, Vercoe leads the squad with a 9-12 record, the most victories on the team, along with a 4.51 ERA, the second-best of any ETSU hurler.  The rookie has also collected a team-best 11 complete games, throwing a total of 118.0 innings with 48 strikeouts.

Vercoe sports a .289 average through the regular season, after posting 41 hits, seven doubles, five homeruns, and 28 RBIs.  The freshman has also been one of the Lady Bucs' most consistent fielders, tallying a .978 fielding percentage at first base.

Stetson's Melissa Wiggins earned Player of the Year honors, while teammate Erica Demers earned Freshman of the Year accolades. Mercer's Katie Rosentreter claimed Pitcher of the Year, and two head coaches, Campbell's Drew Peterson and Kennesaw State's Scott Whitlock share Coach of the Year.

Vercoe and the Lady Bucs ended the regular season on a hot streak, winning seven of their last eight to earn the fifth seed in this weekend's Atlantic Sun Tournament.  ETSU takes on host school and second-seeded Florida Atlantic in the opening round, starting at 11 a.m., on Thursday, May 11.