Bowling Green State University Athletics
Gottshall, McCoy Earn All-MAC First-Team Honors
May 20, 2021 | Softball
Gottshall named MAC Freshman Pitcher of the Year; L'Esperance chosen to All-Defensive Team
A pair of Bowling Green State University softball standouts have been named to the All-Mid-American Conference First Team. Senior Madi McCoy and redshirt freshman Payton Gottshall each earned all-conference first-team accolades for the first time in their respective careers.
Gottshall was also named the MAC's Freshman Pitcher of the Year, and fellow redshirt freshman Greta L'Esperance was chosen to the MAC's All-Defensive Team.
The all-league squad, along with the specialty award winners, was announced on Thursday afternoon (May 20) by the conference office.
Gottshall and McCoy are the Falcons' first all-conference first-team selections since Katie Yoho in 2014. BGSU has multiple first-team picks for the first time since 2012 (Hannah Fulk and Jamie Kertes).
Gottshall, a native of Massillon, Ohio (Perry), had one of the finest seasons in the circle in BGSU softball history. Despite missing nearly a month of the season due to injury, she had a 20-12 record and a 1.87 earned-run average. Gottshall shattered the school records for strikeouts (282) and strikeouts per seven innings (9.79) and allowed opponents to hit just .185 against her.
Gottshall had two no-hitters this season, including a perfect game, and her 14 games with double-digit strikeout totals include a school-record 20 strikeouts in a one-hit shutout. She is just the fourth pitcher in school history, and the first since 1995, to win 20 games in a season. Gottshall had eight shutouts among her 25 complete games (in 29 starts) and added her name to no fewer than eight BGSU single-season records lists. And, Gottshall – again, just a redshirt freshman – already has added her name to seven BGSU career lists.
McCoy, from Washington, Ill. (Washington), hit a team-leading .380, and the shortstop also paced the Falcons in doubles (15), homers (11), runs batted in (43), total bases (110), on-base percentage (.423) and slugging pct. (.696). She set a school record for hits in a game, going 5-for-5 (with two homers and two doubles) in a win at Northern Illinois, and she became the first player in school history with three multiple-homer games in a season.
McCoy batted .423 in MAC games this spring, the highest average by a BGSU player since 2006. With a career slugging percentage of .617, she holds the school record in that category. McCoy added her name to eight BGSU single-season records lists in 2021, and was just three RBI shy of that school record. Despite playing the equivalent of roughly two seasons in a BGSU uniform, McCoy is ranked on five career charts including slugging pct. She tied the school record with four multi-HR games in her BG career.
L'Esperance, a native of Byron, Mich. (Byron), started 53 of BGSU's 54 games in 2021. The speedy centerfielder covered a ton of ground in the outfield and had a perfect 1.000 fielding pct. in 74 chances. She threw out two runners at the plate, both coming in 1-0 wins in MAC play. One of those assists was a game-ending strike as the would-be tying run was cut down at home in a BG win over Kent State.
At the plate, L'Esperance hit .376 to rank second on the team, just behind McCoy. She led the Falcons with 35 runs scored, 70 hits and 25 stolen bases. She etched her name onto five BGSU single-season lists, ranking fifth or higher on three of those charts. L'Esperance, just a redshirt freshman, already ranks 11th on the career steals list, with 29.
BGSU ended the 2021 season with an overall record of 27-27, and the Falcons went 19-20 in MAC action. BG, picked to finish eighth in the MAC in the preseason coaches' poll, ended the season in fifth place in the 11-team league. BGSU was one of two conference teams to finish as many as three places higher than predicted.
The Falcons finished with the program's highest winning percentage in MAC play since 2012, and BGSU's overall total of 27 wins is the highest since the 2013 campaign.
A total of 14 of the 23 players on the 2021 roster were true freshmen or redshirt freshmen.
For more information on BGSU softball, follow the Falcons on Twitter (@BGAthletics and @BGSUSoftball) and Instagram (@bgsu_softball) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.
2021 ALL-MAC TEAM AND SPECIALTY AWARDS
Coach of the Year: Kirin Kumar, MiamiÂ
Player of the Year: Dayna Denner, Toledo
Pitcher of the Year:Â Courtney Vierstra, MiamiÂ
Freshman Player of the Year:Â Karli Spaid, MiamiÂ
Freshman Pitcher of the Year:Â Payton Gottshall, Bowling GreenÂ
Nan Harvey Award:Â Katie Keller, Northern IllinoisÂ
ALL-MAC FIRST TEAM
Payton Gottshall, Pitcher, Bowling Green
Courtney Vierstra, Pitcher, MiamiÂ
Katie Keller, Catcher, Northern Illinois
Holly Blaska, First Base, MiamiÂ
Karli Spaid, Second Base, MiamiÂ
Madi McCoy, Shortstop, Bowling GreenÂ
Dayna Denner, Third Base, ToledoÂ
Faith Hensley, Outfield, Ball StateÂ
Anna Aguon, Outfield, BuffaloÂ
Mackenzie Swinehart, Outfield, Western MichiganÂ
Alexis Lucyshyn, Util-P, BuffaloÂ
Allie Cummins, Util-F, MiamiÂ
Stacy Payton, Catcher, Ball State*
Haley Dominique, Outfield, Ball State*
Katie Yun, Shortstop, Ohio* Â
ALL-MAC SECOND TEAMÂ
Deborah Jones, Pitcher, Ball State
Jessica Lebeau, Pitcher, Kent State
Brianna Pratt, Pitcher, MiamiÂ
Riley Coyne, Catcher, Miami
Megan Turner, First Base, Kent State
Mikenzie Vaughn, Second Base, Ohio
Kayla Lissy, Shortstop, Ball State
Mackenzie Moore, Third Base, MiamiÂ
Alexis Matheney, Outfield, BuffaloÂ
Brooklyn Whitt, Outfield, Kent State
Kennadie Goth, Outfield, Kent State
Sydney Stefanick, Util-P, Western Michigan
Kaitlyn Miller, Util-F, Kent State
Adriana Barlow, Shortstop, Miami*Â
Allie Englant, Outfield, Ohio*
Abbey Tolmie, Outfield, Central Michigan*Â
*At Large Selections
ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
Kennedy Wynn, Ball State
Greta L'Esperance, Bowling Green
Emily Bracamonte, Central MichiganÂ
Carlee Selle, Kent State
Morgan Lott, MiamiÂ
Holly Blaska, MiamiÂ
Katie Keller, NIUÂ
Caroline Spacek, OhioÂ
Leah Munson, Toledo
ÂGallery: (5-20-2021) Softball All-MAC Honorees - May 20 2021
Gottshall was also named the MAC's Freshman Pitcher of the Year, and fellow redshirt freshman Greta L'Esperance was chosen to the MAC's All-Defensive Team.
The all-league squad, along with the specialty award winners, was announced on Thursday afternoon (May 20) by the conference office.
Gottshall and McCoy are the Falcons' first all-conference first-team selections since Katie Yoho in 2014. BGSU has multiple first-team picks for the first time since 2012 (Hannah Fulk and Jamie Kertes).
Gottshall, a native of Massillon, Ohio (Perry), had one of the finest seasons in the circle in BGSU softball history. Despite missing nearly a month of the season due to injury, she had a 20-12 record and a 1.87 earned-run average. Gottshall shattered the school records for strikeouts (282) and strikeouts per seven innings (9.79) and allowed opponents to hit just .185 against her.
Gottshall had two no-hitters this season, including a perfect game, and her 14 games with double-digit strikeout totals include a school-record 20 strikeouts in a one-hit shutout. She is just the fourth pitcher in school history, and the first since 1995, to win 20 games in a season. Gottshall had eight shutouts among her 25 complete games (in 29 starts) and added her name to no fewer than eight BGSU single-season records lists. And, Gottshall – again, just a redshirt freshman – already has added her name to seven BGSU career lists.
McCoy, from Washington, Ill. (Washington), hit a team-leading .380, and the shortstop also paced the Falcons in doubles (15), homers (11), runs batted in (43), total bases (110), on-base percentage (.423) and slugging pct. (.696). She set a school record for hits in a game, going 5-for-5 (with two homers and two doubles) in a win at Northern Illinois, and she became the first player in school history with three multiple-homer games in a season.
McCoy batted .423 in MAC games this spring, the highest average by a BGSU player since 2006. With a career slugging percentage of .617, she holds the school record in that category. McCoy added her name to eight BGSU single-season records lists in 2021, and was just three RBI shy of that school record. Despite playing the equivalent of roughly two seasons in a BGSU uniform, McCoy is ranked on five career charts including slugging pct. She tied the school record with four multi-HR games in her BG career.
L'Esperance, a native of Byron, Mich. (Byron), started 53 of BGSU's 54 games in 2021. The speedy centerfielder covered a ton of ground in the outfield and had a perfect 1.000 fielding pct. in 74 chances. She threw out two runners at the plate, both coming in 1-0 wins in MAC play. One of those assists was a game-ending strike as the would-be tying run was cut down at home in a BG win over Kent State.
At the plate, L'Esperance hit .376 to rank second on the team, just behind McCoy. She led the Falcons with 35 runs scored, 70 hits and 25 stolen bases. She etched her name onto five BGSU single-season lists, ranking fifth or higher on three of those charts. L'Esperance, just a redshirt freshman, already ranks 11th on the career steals list, with 29.
BGSU ended the 2021 season with an overall record of 27-27, and the Falcons went 19-20 in MAC action. BG, picked to finish eighth in the MAC in the preseason coaches' poll, ended the season in fifth place in the 11-team league. BGSU was one of two conference teams to finish as many as three places higher than predicted.
The Falcons finished with the program's highest winning percentage in MAC play since 2012, and BGSU's overall total of 27 wins is the highest since the 2013 campaign.
A total of 14 of the 23 players on the 2021 roster were true freshmen or redshirt freshmen.
For more information on BGSU softball, follow the Falcons on Twitter (@BGAthletics and @BGSUSoftball) and Instagram (@bgsu_softball) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.
2021 ALL-MAC TEAM AND SPECIALTY AWARDS
Coach of the Year: Kirin Kumar, MiamiÂ
Player of the Year: Dayna Denner, Toledo
Pitcher of the Year:Â Courtney Vierstra, MiamiÂ
Freshman Player of the Year:Â Karli Spaid, MiamiÂ
Freshman Pitcher of the Year:Â Payton Gottshall, Bowling GreenÂ
Nan Harvey Award:Â Katie Keller, Northern IllinoisÂ
ALL-MAC FIRST TEAM
Payton Gottshall, Pitcher, Bowling Green
Courtney Vierstra, Pitcher, MiamiÂ
Katie Keller, Catcher, Northern Illinois
Holly Blaska, First Base, MiamiÂ
Karli Spaid, Second Base, MiamiÂ
Madi McCoy, Shortstop, Bowling GreenÂ
Dayna Denner, Third Base, ToledoÂ
Faith Hensley, Outfield, Ball StateÂ
Anna Aguon, Outfield, BuffaloÂ
Mackenzie Swinehart, Outfield, Western MichiganÂ
Alexis Lucyshyn, Util-P, BuffaloÂ
Allie Cummins, Util-F, MiamiÂ
Stacy Payton, Catcher, Ball State*
Haley Dominique, Outfield, Ball State*
Katie Yun, Shortstop, Ohio* Â
ALL-MAC SECOND TEAMÂ
Deborah Jones, Pitcher, Ball State
Jessica Lebeau, Pitcher, Kent State
Brianna Pratt, Pitcher, MiamiÂ
Riley Coyne, Catcher, Miami
Megan Turner, First Base, Kent State
Mikenzie Vaughn, Second Base, Ohio
Kayla Lissy, Shortstop, Ball State
Mackenzie Moore, Third Base, MiamiÂ
Alexis Matheney, Outfield, BuffaloÂ
Brooklyn Whitt, Outfield, Kent State
Kennadie Goth, Outfield, Kent State
Sydney Stefanick, Util-P, Western Michigan
Kaitlyn Miller, Util-F, Kent State
Adriana Barlow, Shortstop, Miami*Â
Allie Englant, Outfield, Ohio*
Abbey Tolmie, Outfield, Central Michigan*Â
*At Large Selections
ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
Kennedy Wynn, Ball State
Greta L'Esperance, Bowling Green
Emily Bracamonte, Central MichiganÂ
Carlee Selle, Kent State
Morgan Lott, MiamiÂ
Holly Blaska, MiamiÂ
Katie Keller, NIUÂ
Caroline Spacek, OhioÂ
Leah Munson, Toledo
Â
Players Mentioned
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