2016 Northeast Conference Softball Award Winners
BROOKLYN, N.Y. - After winning the program's 11th regular-season title and the first since 2010, the LIU Brooklyn softball team was honored with four major awards from the Northeast Conference on Wednesday.
Senior Celinna Cosio was named NEC Player of the Year, while sophomore Erynn Sobieski picked up Pitcher of the Year accolades. Sophomore Victoria Zamora won the Golden Glove Award and the LIU Brooklyn coaching staff of head coach Roy Kortmann and assistants Bill Gehrke and Andy Russo were selected as NEC Coaching Staff of the Year.
In addition, Cosio, Sobieski, Zamora, senior Whitney West and junior Kylie Mulholland were named to the All-NEC First Team, and the five honorees is tied the most players to collect first-team honors for the Blackbirds in a single season.
Cosio was a terror with the bat in conference play, hitting a league-high .500 against NEC foes with seven home runs and 25 RBIs. The San Diego native, who is the fifth LIU player to receive Player of the Year honors and the first since All-American Bianca Mejia in 2010, slugged an impressive 1.100 in 16 NEC games, the highest slugging percentage for a league player since at least 2004.
Heading into the NEC Tournament, Cosio is riding a nine-game hitting streak and is batting .576 over the span with seven home runs and 21 RBIs. Cosio was named NEC Player of the Week on May 2 after helping the Blackbirds to wins over Rutgers and Sacred Heart. Overall, she leads LIU with eight home runs and 37 RBIs.
Sobieski becomes the sixth player in LIU Brooklyn history to be named NEC Pitcher of the Year, and the first since All-American Blaire Porter earned the distinction in 2010. The sophomore went 9-1 against NEC foes this season, compiling a 1.25 ERA over 14 appearances while striking out 59 batters and walking just six.
The Logan Township, N.J. product was named the conference's Pitcher of the Week five times, the most by an LIU player in a single season. Overall, Sobieski has earned 17 victories on the year to sit just outside the single-season top 10.
Following a freshman campaign that saw her win NEC Rookie of the Year, Zamora picks up the second major award of her career after shining with her defense behind the plate. The sophomore catcher threw out 44.7 percent of base runners attempting to steal this season, including 50.0 percent against Top 75 RPI teams and 55.6 percent against league opponents.
Additionally, Zamora managed a pitching staff that led the NEC with a 1.40 ERA in 16 conference contests and allowed just three passed balls all year. The Orange, Calif. native, who also ranks second on the team with a .364 batting average, joins former second baseman and current volunteer assistant coach Madison Green as the only Blackbirds to win the award.
Kortmann and his assistant coaches led the Blackbirds to a 14-2 record in NEC play, the best winning percentage for the program in a single season since 2009. LIU Brooklyn played a tough non-conference slate that featured three victories over Big Ten opponents - Illinois, Northwestern and Rutgers.
In mid February, the Blackbirds knocked off Florida Atlantic, 2-1, and is one of just seven teams in the country to defeat the 23rd-ranked Owls this season. Later in the year, Kortmann earned career win No. 600 with a doubleheader sweep of Mount St. Mary's.
West was named to an All-NEC team for the third time and picked up first-team honors for the first time in her career after leading the league in hitting at .371. The senior outfielder became LIU Brooklyn's all-time hits leader earlier this season and has 237 in her four years with the Blackbirds. One of the fastest players in the league, she registered a league-leading five triples and stole 11 bases to tie for fourth in the conference.
Mulholland used her glove at the hot corner and her line-drive swing to earn the first all-league honor of her career after being named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Region team a season ago. Mulholland ranked second on the team with a .438 batting average in league games and stroked a team-high six doubles. At third base, she committed just two errors in 49 chances during league games.
LIU Brooklyn (27-24, 14-2 NEC) begins NEC Tournament action on Thursday, May 12 at LIU Field against No. 4 Bryant. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m., and will follow the first game of the day that will feature No. 2 Saint Francis U. and No. 3 Robert Morris. First pitch of that game is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.