May 13, 2008
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Georgetown University sophomore shortstop Samantha Peters (Suwanee, Ga./Collins Hill) was named the 2008 NCAA Division I Softball All-Independent Player of the Year, when post-season awards were announced in Bakersfield, Calif. on Tuesday afternoon. It was just the second post-season honor earned by a Hoya, in the softball program's three year history. Peters earned All-Independent Freshman of the Year in 2007.
Peters was also named the All-Independent first team shortstop, as sophomore Demetria Cipriano (Coral Springs, Fla./Coral Springs Charter) earned All-Independent second team as the utility player and sophomore pitcher Jennifer Connell earned All-Independent honorable mention.
During her break out season, Peters led Independent softball with 16 home runs, a total that placed her in the top 16 nationally. She also ranked among the national leaders in slugging percentage (.743), RBI (50) and runs scored (46), while winning the Independent Triple Crown, leading the league with a .380 batting average (65-for-171) to go with her league leading home run and RBI totals.
"Samantha Peters is a coaches dream and a true five tool player," Georgetown head coach Pat Conlan said. "She can hit for average and power, has a terrific glove, a rocket for an arm and excellent speed, however her most important asset is her work ethic and attitude. She never strives for anything but the best and is the type of impact player that when she steps on the field she makes everyone else around her better."
Cipriano batted .337 (59-for-175) mostly from the lead-off spot, while finishing with the second highest total of doubles (21) in the nation to earn second team All-Independent honors as a Utility player. She showed her versatility starting 25 games at first base, 22 games at third base and 10 as the designated player, finishing the season with a .965 fielding percentage.
"Our program has grown a lot in the last two seasons and we've been able to build it together and it's been a great honor just to be able to be a part of that," Cipriano said when informed of the honor.
"I always tell Demi that the leadoff batter has a huge responsibility, she wanted to be in that spot and accepted that challenge and it's no coincidence that we started to win more games as Demi's bat got hot," Conlan said. "She really stepped up on defense. We had some injuries and had to make some changes in our lineup and she did whatever we asked of her."
Connell (Roswell, Ga./Roswell) rounded out the GU's post-season award winners earning All-Independent honorable mention, finishing the season with a 14-24 record and 3.81 ERA. Connell tossed six complete-game shutouts.
"Any time a pitcher can have a solid outing it gives us an opportunity to win," Conlan said. "With a young team and a team that struggled offensively at times it was imperative to hold the opposition to a minimal amount of runs, when Jen did that we were in every ballgame and had a chance to win."
