2006 BIG EAST co-Rookie of the Year Tonye McCorkle (left) and 2006 BIG EAST Player of the Year Alexis Switenko (right).
SU's Switenko Named BIG EAST Player of the Year; McCorkle Nabs co-Rookie of the Year Honors
5/10/2006 9:32:11 PM | Softball
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Senior shortstop/pitcher Alexis Switenko (Blue Anchor, N.J.) was chosen as the 2006 BIG EAST Player of the Year and outfielder Tonye McCorkle (Santa Ana, Heights, Calif.) was named the 2006 BIG EAST co-Rookie of the Year on Wednesday, May 10 at the conference’s softball awards banquet held at the South Bend Marriott. The award winners were decided by a vote of the league’s 12 head coaches who were not permitted to vote for their own players.
Switenko is the first Orange player to take home the conference’s top individual honor. McCorkle is the third SU student-athlete to be tabbed the league’s Rookie of the Year joining teammate Erin Downey (San Rafael, Calif.), who won the award in 2005 and 2002 winner Tanya Rose.
In addition to their individual awards, Switenko and McCorkle were named to the all-conference first team. Joining them on the first team was senior designated player Cassie Morales (Whittier, Calif.). Downey and freshman first baseman Heather Kim (Boulder, Colo.) received 2006 All-BIG EAST Third Team recognition.
At the plate, Switenko set SU season records in 2006 for batting average (.398), runs scored (42), hits (64), homers (15), runs batted in (44), total bases (121), slugging percentage (.752) and on-base percentage (.476). She ranks third in the BIG EAST in hitting and leads the conference in home runs, total bases and slugging. Switenko is tied for second in the league in runs and ranks second in on-base percentage. She batted .455 (30-66) in conference games with five doubles, seven homers and 19 runs batted in.
Earlier this year, Switenko became the first SU player to record two separate hitting streaks of at least 10 games. She hit safely in 10 consecutive contests from March 19 through April 6 and had hits in 11 straight games from April 8-19.
In the circle, Switenko has posted a 16-3 overall record and leads the Orange with a 2.25 earned run average. Her 16 victories rank fourth on SU’s single-season chart. She has pitched four shutouts and struck out 105 batters in 130 and two-thirds innings. Against conference foes, Switenko is 6-2 with a 2.55 ERA. She tossed her only shutout in BIG EAST play on April 23 against South Florida. Switenko no-hit the Bulls for six and two-thirds innings, allowing just a single with two outs in the seventh to hand USF its first conference loss.
It was the fourth all-conference nod for Switenko, who was an all-rookie team choice in 2003 and was named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team in 2004 and 2005.
McCorkle is sixth in the conference in hitting (.373) and is tied for sixth in the league with 14 doubles. She set Orange freshman records in 2006 for batting average, hits (59), doubles, runs scored (37) and total bases (86). McCorkle hit in 14 straight games from April 1-15, the second-longest hitting streak in team history. She owns a .379 batting average (29-78) versus BIG EAST teams with 17 runs scored, two homers, including a grand slam versus Villanova on April 1, and 14 runs batted in.
McCorkle shared the 2006 Rookie of the Year Award with pitcher Cristi Ecks of USF.
Morales was named to the All-BIG EAST First Team for the second consecutive season. She ranks second in the BIG EAST in career doubles (23) and is hitting .302 (51-169) with a personal-best 11 home runs and 42 RBI this year. She has 13 doubles and stole her first career base in addition to hitting the first triple of her career earlier this season. Morales is tied for third in the BIG EAST in homers and ranks seventh in slugging (.598). She is tied for sixth in the league in RBI. Morales batted .317 (20-63) in league play with five homers and a team-best 20 runs batted in. She slugged .651 against conference opponents, the second-best mark on the team.
In addition to her two all-conference first-team nods, Morales earned third-team honors in 2004.
Downey established Orange season records for wins (20), strikeouts (261), appearances (40), starts (33), complete games (29) and innings pitched (231) this season. She leads the conference in strikeouts and innings pitched. Against Georgia State on March 4, she struck out a career-high 18 hitters. Downey is 20-16 overall with a 2.76 earned run average. She also has one save. Against conference opponents, Downey was 9-5 with a 2.27 ERA and two shutouts. She fanned 101 batters in 92 and two-thirds innings in league play.
Downey was picked to the All-BIG EAST Second Team last season in addition to taking home league Rookie of the Year honors.
Kim set SU freshman records this year for runs batted in (35) and on-base percentage. She is third on the team in hitting with a .354 batting average (46-130). Kim has seven doubles and four home runs. She owns a .986 fielding percentage, the second-best mark on the team for a player with at least 15 chances.
In the conference play, Kim hit .359 (23-64). She belted five doubles, two homers and drove in 16 runs. She led the conference in walks versus league foes with 14.
Syracuse (36-20, 15-7) is seeded fourth for the 2006 BIG EAST Championship and will square off against No. 5 seed DePaul in the quarterfinals at 10:00 a.m. at the Belleville Softball Complex on Thursday, May 11. The winner of the tournament will receive the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals.
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