NFCA ALL-AMERICANS
D2CCA ALL-AMERICANS
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP HOMEPAGE
 
DENVER, Colo. – The National Fastpitch Coaches Association announced its Division II All-America teams at the NCAA Division II Championship banquet on Wednesday night, and three members of the University of West Florida softball team were on the list. Rhiannon Sassman earns all-america status for the second time in her career and is a member of the second team, and third-teamers Kelsey Sweatt and Teala Howard are first-time honorees.
 
Additionally, the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association (D2CCA) released its All-American list on Wednesday, and all three Argonauts made the cut. Howard earned a spot on the second team as a utility player, Sassman is a third-team third baseman, and Sweatt is a pitcher on the honorable mention list.
 
The trio makes up UWF's 10th, 11th, and 12th NFCA All-Americans in program history, and West Florida's 3rd, 4th, and 5th D2CCA All-Americans.  
 
Rhiannon Sassman previously was named an NFCA All-American as a freshman in 2016, and she made the grade as the second team third baseman in her senior season. The honor adds to several accolades that Sassman has earned already this year, as she was named the Gulf South Conference and D2CCA South Region Player of the Year in early May.
 
The Orlando, Florida, native is the GSC all-time leader in triples, with 24, and she leads Division II with 8 three-baggers this year. On top of that, Sassman is among GSC leaders in batting (.380), slugging (.603), OBP (.482), runs (46), hits (68), RBIs (50), and doubles (15) this year. The senior will wrap up an extraordinary career at UWF at the end of the season, ranking in the top 10 in program history in batting (.361), slugging (.581), doubles (47), triples (24), runs (164), RBIs (154), total bases (361), and walks (91).
 
Kelsey Sweatt has made the most of her first year in the Blue and Green, becoming UWF's first All-American pitcher since Amber Browning in 2005. She was named the D2CCA South Region Pitcher of the Year earlier this month, after putting up outstanding numbers in her first season at West Florida, with a 1.54 ERA, a 19-3 record, and a .168 opponent batting average. The reigning GSC Tournament Most Outstanding Player, Sweatt leads the GSC in ERA and hits allowed per seven innings (4.11), and she shut out West Alabama and Valdosta State in the GSC Tournament.
 
The sophomore transfer from USC-Upstate ranks second in the GSC with 19 wins and has a 1.25 ERA in the postseason, with 29 strikeouts in 33.2 innings. Her winning percentage of .864 (19-3) would be the fifth-best in UWF single-season history and her hits allowed per seven innings (4.1) would rank fourth.
 
Teala Howard has put together one of the best freshman seasons in UWF history, and she joins Sassman as the only Argonauts to earn All-America status in their freshman years. She was also named one of eight finalists for the 2019 Schutt Sports / NFCA Freshman of the Year earlier this month.
 
The rookie from Lake Butler, Florida, has already been named a first-team All-South Region selection by the NFCA and the D2CCA this season, and she earned GSC Freshman of the Year honors earlier this month. She currently ranks ninth in Division II in batting (.470), third in total hits (95), and sixth in total stolen bases (49). Howard's current batting average (.470) would be the best in UWF single-season history, her on-base percentage (.500) would be third, and her stolen base total (49) would be fourth. Howard has multiple hits in 32 of UWF's 62 games this year. Howard is also riding a 16-game hitting streak that dates back to April 25 against Florida Southern, and she is hitting .489 over that time.
 
UWF's three NFCA All-America selections were the second-most in the country, behind only Winona State with four.
 
West Florida will play 7-seed West Chester in its first game of the NCAA Championship on Thursday at 5 pm CT/4 pm MT.