Wells capped a wonderful freshman season with Independent Pitcher of the Year
May 14, 2008
FARMVILLE, Va. - Longwood University freshman pitcher Briana Wells/Romoland, Calif. (Paloma Valley) was named the 2008 Independent Pitcher of the Year on Wednesday, while also earning a spot on the All-Independent First-Team. Senior shortstop Ryan Washington/Bealeton (Liberty) joined Wells on the First-Team, while senior center fielder Caitlin Hooe/Richmond (Douglas Freeman) earned a spot on the Second-Team. Senior pitcher Rachel Mills/Quinton (New Kent County) and sophomore right fielder Cami Ketsdever/Irvine, Calif. (Irvine) both earned All-Independent Honorable Mention. Head Coach Kathy Riley was named the 2008 Independent Coach of the Year after guiding the Lancers to a 27-18 record.
Wells (12-7) capped a fantastic freshman campaign by leading all Division I Independent pitchers with a 2.25 ERA and a .214 opponent batting average. Included in her victories was her first career no-hitter on April 15 over Liberty. Wells was also responsible for leading the Lancers to two wins over Top 20 programs, helping the team take down Georgia (then #17) and Virginia Tech (then #19).
Washington, who was recently named Longwood Female Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive year (2007, 2008), finished her spectacular Lancer career in style. The senior shortstop moved into first place all-time at Longwood in runs scored (145), second all-time in home runs (27) and stolen bases (80), while moving into third all-time in walks (59). Washington played in every game for the Lancers this season, anchoring the center of the field with a .931 fielding percentage and .554 slugging percentage.
Hooe, who was the Lancers lead-off batter in 44 of their 45 games, ended the season with a team leading 137 at bats and 44 hits. Hooe moved herself into third all-time in stolen bases (49), after successfully executing 14 of 16 attempts. The senior center fielder ended her career at Longwood by also being named the 2008 Longwood Female Henry I. Willett Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Mills returned to the Longwood line-up this season after undergoing a second ACL surgery in the off-season, moving into second all-time in innings pitched with 574.2 and strikeouts (324), and third all-time in wins (60). Over the course of the season the senior pitcher compiled a 13-10 record and 2.92 ERA.
Ketsdever spent the season as the No. 2 hitter in the Lancers lineup, starting 44 of the teams 45 games in right field. The sophomore right fielder made 133 plate appearances during the season, hitting 41 times and scoring 17. From the field Ketsdever earned a fielding percentage of .958.
Riley, in her 11th season at the Longwood helm, led the Lancers to a 27-18 record, which was the best among NCAA Division I independent schools. Riley set her team up for a challenge this season, matching them against several top programs, including Georgia, Virginia Tech, North Carolina and Florida. The team responded ending the season ranked 83 in the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) and earning Riley her 400th career victory - an 8-0 win over Quinnipiac on Feb. 23.