LINK: Complete GNAC Release
Winthrop, Mass. – A quartet of Albertus Magnus College softball players earned All-Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) honors as announced by the league office on Monday afternoon. The Falcons landed one player on the first team, one on the second team and two on the third team.
Junior infielder Gillian Fortier (Naugatuck, Conn.) was named the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Player of the Year for the second time in her career as well as named to the first team for the third straight year. Fellow classmate Melissa Castillo (Taftville, Conn.) landed on the second team while senior outfielder Megan Kelly (Bronx, N.Y.) and junior Brianna Whitfield (West Islip, N.Y.) both received third team distinction.
The GNAC All-Sportsmanship Team was also announced on Monday and sophomore catcher Marissa Guglielmi (Branford, Conn.) represented Albertus Magnus on the squad.
Fortier enjoys All-Conference honors for the third straight year in a row after a standout junior campaign that saw career-highs in seven different statistical categories. The junior batted .441 with a career-best 67 hits including 28 extra-base hits on a career-high 15 doubles, two triples and a career-best 11 home runs. She belted a league-high 52 RBI and 58 runs scored as well as recorded a career-high on-base percentage of .500. She also recorded her 100th career run earlier this season at Johnson & Wales and this past weekend picked up 100th career RBI against Norwich in the GNAC Tournament.
Castillo earns All-Conference honors for the first in her careeras a first baseman following another strong year at the plate. Over 43 games, the junior batted .371 while posting a monster .636 slugging percentage while also collecting a .401 on-base percentage. Castillo belted a career-best seven home runs and 53 hits to rank her second on the team overall. She also added 11 doubles and three triples for 21 extra base hits. Earlier this season, Castillo hit a major milestone in her career as she recorded her 100th career hit at Simmons.
Whiftield recorded another breakout year for Albertus Magnus, starting 43 games and hitting .373, ranking her third on the team.The Taftville, Conn. native finished the season with 37 runs, 24 RBI, 10 walks, 15 extra-base hits including two home runs and 11 stolen bases. The starter at short stop was also stellar in the field committing just five errors to boast a .963 fielding percenatge over 136 total chances in the field. Against Rivier earlier this season, Whitfield also joinded the Falcons' 100th career hit club.
Kelly left her mark on the softball program over the past four years and leaves as the second all-time leader in stolen bases with 44. This year, she set a new career-high in seven statistical categories such as runs (34), hits (49), triples (3), RBI (26), batting average (.422), on-base percentage (.451) and slugging percentage (.500). In the outfield, she has the second highest fielding percentage on the team at .957, while making two assists and 37 put outs. She also recorded her 100th career hit as a Falcon at Simmons back on April 22nd.
Guglielmi appeared in 26 games at catcher for Albertus Magnus in 2017. She scored nine runs, knocked 25 hits and picked up 17 RBIs. She finished the season hitting .313 at the plate and recorded a .360 on-base percentage as well as added two stolen bases to her stat line.
The Albertus Magnus College softball team finished the 2017 season with a 30-15 overall record and earned the No. 4 seed in the GNAC Tournament after posting a 15-7 mark in league play. The Falcons saw their season come to an end with a 9-2 setback versus Suffolk in the double elimination portion of the GNAC Tournament.
Founded in 1995, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 12 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Each year, the GNAC sponsors and administers 17 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunities and community involvement.
