Two Softball Players Named to North All-Region Teams.

Vancouver, WA.-

The NWACOffice announced the 2018 NWACSoftball All-Star Team. Pierce College Raider Softball received two nods for the hard work of some of their student-athletes during the season. Freshman outfielder Michaela Hougland (Enumclaw, WA., Enumclaw High School)was named 1st team All North Region. Sophomore Kelby Smith (Puyallup, WA., Rogers High School) was named 2nd team All North Region.

Houglandhad an incredible year for the Raiders, especially on defense. Houglandends up hitting .412, with 11 doubles, and 20 RBIs. She also had a .521 on base percentage. Defensively, she finished with a .949 fielding percentage in centerfield with 73 outs. Coach Amber Coburn said, "Michaela has worked extremely hard this entire season and it's really shown. I am proud of her for consistently getting better and improving. She deserves the recognition of first team all league as an outfielder, also holding the second highest batting average for our program this season.

Smith ended up leading the team in hitting with a .420 batting average. She also was second on the team with 35 RBIs. Smith also added in nine doubles and nine homers. Defensively, she had a .897 fielding percentage at second base, and had a 1.000 fielding percentage in right field. Coach Coburn said, "Kelby worked very hard this season and again it shows. We were able to count on her as a Utility player moving her from outfield to infield every few games. She's very versatile and that's what makes her such a good athlete. Kelby deserves the recognition of second team all league as a Utility player, also holding the top batting average on team this season."

Pierce ended up finishing in #20 in the RPI to end the season, after following the NWACNorth during much of the year finishing7-25 in the North. Pierce looks forward to moving into the 2018-19 season, knowing that five student-athletes will be returning in the fall with a number of new recruits. The team feels lucky knowing that Hougland will return for her sophomore year in the fall.