Foothill League softball season may be coming to a close, but the league’s alumni will be making countless appearances in the NCAA Division 1 Tournament, which begins with double-elimination regionals on Friday.
Here are the Santa Clarita Valley products to look for in the upcoming tournament:
Erin Andris, Valencia, DePaul
Andris, a junior, played a key role in defeating Villanova for DePaul’s third straight Big East title on May 11. In the sixth inning, she cracked an RBI double to score teammate Brianna Viles then was driven in on a double from Jessica Cothern.
Overall stats were unavailable for Andris, who will appear in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday against James Madison. The game will air on ESPN3 at 11 a.m.
Cassidy Cangemi, Golden Valley, Boise State
Cangemi is earning her way into the Broncos’ pitching rotation in her freshman year. Boise State has seven pitchers including Cangemi, who was the heartbeat of the Grizzlies last season.
In her senior campaign, she had a 1.41 ERA with 17 wins and four losses. In 133 ⅔ innings, she allowed 50 hits while striking out 223 batters.
Boise State plays Stanford at 9 a.m. on ESPNU.
Amanda Doyle, Canyon, LSU
Coming off a 2018 season that included NFCA Third Team All-South Region, Spring SEC Academic Honor Roll and LSWA Second Team accolades, Doyle is continuing to make an impact in her junior year.
With a batting average of .288 and a slugging percentage of .485, Doyle has 47 hits in 163 plate appearances. She also has logged 30 runs, 37 RBIs and seven home runs.
LSU takes on Monmouth at 2:30 p.m. on Friday on ESPN3.
Jessie Harper, West Ranch, University of Arizona
In her third year with the Wildcats, the elder Harper sister has gone 63-for-176 for a batting average of .341. She also has recorded 58 runs, nine RBIs, and a team-leading 25 home runs. Defensively, she has 59 putouts.
One of her best games of the season was against Oregon State, in which she hit two home runs and drove in five runs.
Harper, who was named an All-Pac-12 first-team player last season, will appear with Arizona against Harvard at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
Makenna Harper, West Ranch, Arizona State
As a freshman, the outfielder is 9-for-16 at the plate with two RBIs and nine runs. Harper and the Sun Devils are 33-18 overall on the season and finished 13-11 in Pac-12 play. ASU is also on a four-game win streak.
Arizona State plays Lipscomb on ESPN3 at 1 p.m. on Friday.
Cayla Kessinger, Saugus, Missouri
The former Centurion has no stats for this year according to Missouri’s athletics website, but Kessinger is coming off a sophomore season that included Second-Team All-SEC honors and an NFCA First-Team Southeast All-Region accolade.
Mizzou will be on ESPNU on Friday at 5:30 p.m. for a matchup against CSU Fullerton.
Mariah Lopez, Saugus, Oklahoma
Lopez is ranked in the top 20 nationally in ERA, sitting in 11th at 1.10. She also ranks 12th nationally in strikeouts per seven innings pitched with 9.7.
The junior right-handed pitcher will go up against UMBC on ESPN2 at 6:30 p.m.
Kylie Norwood, Hart, Toledo
Norwood has a batting average of .314 and ranks second on the team with 38 runs. She’s 60-for-191 with 30 RBIs (second-most on the team), 15 doubles and four home runs. Defensively, she has a fielding percentage of .916.
The former Indian will be on ESPN3 on Friday at 11:30 a.m. in a game against Kentucky.
Shea O’Leary, Valencia, Texas
O’Leary has been excelling as a freshman, recording a season-high strikeout count of eight against Sam Houston State on Feb. 22.
Overall this season, O’Leary has pitched a total of 90 1/3 innings, giving up 54 hits while recording 61 strikeouts. She also had one save.
O’Leary has another chance to face Sam Houston State as the Longhorns have a rematch on ESPN3 at 2 p.m.
Ally Shipman, Valencia, Tennessee
Shipman, who caught for O’Leary at Valencia, got off to a hot start with the Lady Vols in her freshman year. She logged a batting average of .328, going 21-for-64. She homered three times to go with 20 RBIs.
Shipman has yet to see action since Tennessee’s game against Middle Tennessee on March 12. The Lady Vols play Longwood on ESPN3 at 10:30 a.m.
Abby Sweet, Hart, Notre Dame
The Hart product is 47-for-139 for a batting average of .338 this season as a sophomore. One of her best games came on May 4 against Georgia Tech when she had a triple, three RBIs and two stolen bases.
On defense, she had 53 putouts and a .981 fielding percentage.
Sweet and the Irish play Notre Dame on ESPN at 4 p.m.
