LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – Highlighted by
Paige Zigmund being named the PSAC East Pitcher of the Year and being named to the All-PSAC East First Team, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference announced on Tuesday that a total of six East Stroudsburg University Warriors were named to PSAC East Softball All-Conference Teams.
Along with Zigmund's first-team selection,
Jada Smallwood (1B),
Reilly Vicendese (3B),
Molly Nies (OF),
Abigail Weirich (OF), and
Katherine Donaghue (DP) were honored on the All-PSAC East Second Team. These six Warriors have been crucial to ESU breaking its wins record in 2023 and currently rank first in the NCAA DII Atlantic Region.
Zigmund becomes the second Warrior in program history to earn Pitcher of the Year and All-PSAC East First Team honors, joining Marah Range (2021). She set the program record for wins in a season with 17 and closed the regular season with a 20-3 record. The Bethlehem native has been nothing but consistent, allowing three earned runs or less in 19 of 22 starts. Entering the postseason, she ranks third in the conference in ERA (1.71), fourth in hits allowed per seven innings (5.69), fourth in shutouts, fourth in strikeouts, second in WHIP (1.03), and first in victories (20). She is approaching the single-season strikeout record, holding an impressive career record of 30-5 in 40 starts as a Warrior.
Smallwood posted a strong first season as a Warrior, with the former Maryland Terrapin breaking ESU's single-season doubles record, now with 17 on the season. She leads ESU in RBIs, producing 45 runs in 49 games. She has slugged seven home runs and 49 total hits, boasting a batting average of .331 as the Warriors' cleanup hitter. At first base, "Big Metal" has made 254 putouts and nine assists for a .981 fielding percentage. She ranks third in the conference in doubles and fifth in the RBIs.
Vicendese posted another strong all-around season, earning All-PSAC East Second Team honors for the second time in her career. In 50 starts this season, Vicendese is batting a team-best .374, set a new ESU single-season runs record with 50. She has contributed 13 doubles, six triples along with a home run for 30 RBIs. In 163 at-bats, she has struck out just once, holding the title of hardest-to-strikeout out in the nation entering the postseason. Always a threat on the basepaths, Vicendese ranks second on the Warriors with 23 steals. Along with her strong numbers in the batter's box and on base, the Maryland native is also strong at the hot corner, making 49 putouts and 71 assists with just eight errors on the season.
Nies has been a consistent contributor throughout her collegiate career and boasts a .373 batting average this season after switching from second base to right field. Nies has recorded a team-best 62 hits this season, totaling 36 runs scored and 25 RBIs. She is within seven hits of breaking the Warriors' single-season record for hits in a season, which would surpass Ashley Miller's 67 hits set in 2006. She is a perfect 11-for-11 on stolen base attempts in 2023.
Weirich, who is in her first season as a Warrior starter in the outfield, holds a .364 batting average with 56 hits and 44 RBIs in 50 games this season. She set a new single-season record for RBIs with 12 regular-season games remaining and now ranks second on the team behind Smallwood. Along with bringing power with five home runs, she has been nearly unstoppable when reaching base, posting 29 steals in 30 attempts. She leads the PSAC and ranks eighth in the nation in stolen base percentage, while ranking third in the conference in stolen bases and seventh in RBIs.
Donaghue earns All-PSAC East Second Team honors after landing on the first team a season ago. ESU's primary designated player holds a .284 batting average, smacking four home runs, and 22 RBIs. A clutch hitter, she has thrived lately, helping the Warriors win 12 of their final 14 games this season with a team-best 11 RBIs on 12 hits and a .324 batting average. She helped the Warriors pull off a dramatic sweep of Shippensburg on April 16 after belting a walk-off single. She becomes the first Warrior DP to earn PSAC East honors multiple times since Casey Dixon in 2000 and 2001.
ESU, the No. 2 seed in the PSAC East, heads to Quakertown on Wednesday and will face PSAC West No. 3 seed Slippery Rock at 12:30 p.m. in its first action at the PSAC Tournament.
PSAC EASTERN DIVISION
Athlete of the Year: Hannah Marsteller, Shippensburg
Pitcher of the Year: Paige Zigmund, East Stroudsburg
Freshman of the Year: Caitlyn Martell, Shippensburg
Coach of the Year: Diane Lokey, West Chester
PSAC EAST FIRST TEAM
| POS. |
NAME |
INSTITUTION |
CL. |
HOMETOWN / PREVIOUS SCHOOL |
| Catcher |
Aleese Angelo |
Millersville |
Jr. |
Aurora, Ohio / Aurora |
| First Base |
Hannah Marsteller** |
Shippensburg |
Gr. |
Fredericksburg, Va. / Riverbend |
| Second Base |
Katelyn Rittenbaugh^ |
West Chester |
Sr. |
Donaldson, Pa. / Pine Grove |
| Shortstop |
Caitlyn Martell |
Shippensburg |
Fr. |
Morrisville, Pa. / Pennsbury |
| Third Base |
Nicole Purtell** |
Shepherd |
Gr. |
Centreville, Va. / Centreville |
| Outfield |
Delaney Good^ |
Lock Haven |
Jr. |
Mifflinburg, Pa. / Mifflinburg |
| Outfield |
Hailey Melvin |
West Chester |
So. |
Tabernacle, N.J. / Seneca |
| Outfield |
Madison Melvin*^ |
West Chester |
Sr. |
Tabernacle, N.J. / Seneca |
| Designated Player |
Gabby D'Ottavio^ |
Millersville |
Jr. |
Buena, N.J. / Buena Regional |
| Pitcher |
Danielle Ciliberto |
West Chester |
Fr. |
Ambler, Pa. / Wissahickon |
| Pitcher |
Paige Zigmund |
ESU |
Jr. |
Bethlehem, Pa. / Lock Haven |
| Utility/Pitcher |
Sarah Harvey* |
Kutztown |
Sr. |
Swanton, Vt. / Missisquoi Valley Union |
| Utility/Non-Pitcher |
Emma Little |
Bloomsburg |
So. |
Pittsburgh, Pa. / Penn-Trafford |
PSAC EAST SECOND TEAM
| POS. |
NAME |
INSTITUTION |
CL. |
HOMETOWN / PREVIOUS SCHOOL |
| Catcher |
Morgan Lindsay |
Shippensburg |
Jr. |
Hereford, Pa. / Upper Perkiomen |
| First Base |
Jada Smallwood |
ESU |
R-Fr. |
Lithia, Fla. / Maryland |
| Second Base |
Caitlin Donnelly |
Shepherd |
Jr. |
Newark, Del. / Padua Academy |
| Shortstop |
Grace Aguilar*^ |
West Chester |
Sr. |
Frederica, Del. / Lake Forest |
| Third Base |
Reilly Vicendese |
ESU |
Jr. |
Ellicott City, Md. / Maryvale Prep |
| Outfield |
Molly Nies |
ESU |
Sr. |
Marriottsville, Md. / Marriotts Ridge |
| Outfield |
Brianna Stocklin |
Kutztown |
So. |
Deptford, N.J. / Deptford Township |
| Outfield |
Abigail Weirich |
ESU |
So. |
Jessup, Md. / Hammond |
| DP |
Katherine Donaghue* |
ESU |
Sr. |
Woodsboro, Md. / Walkersville |
| Pitcher |
Haley Gravish |
Kutztown |
So. |
Hamburg, Pa. / Hamburg |
| Pitcher |
Callie Sowers* |
Bloomsburg |
So. |
Irwin, Pa. / Hempfield Area |
| Utility/Pitcher |
Kaira Zamadics |
Shippensburg |
Fr. |
Allentown, Pa. / Northampton |
| Utility/Non-Pitcher |
Meg Wolfe |
West Chester |
Fr. |
Pine Grove, Pa. / Pine Grove |
