Indianapolis, IN –The Sage Colleges' had several players rank among the national leaders with the release of the final NCAAA Division III Softball statistics. Sage, which finished the 2014 season as the Skyline Conference regular-season champions and the Skyline Conference Tournament runners-up, posted a record of 23-14 and earned the program's third straight ECAC Metro Division III Tournament appearance to cap the successful season.
As a team, the Gators were ranked in 12 categories in Division III, including a trio of Top 100 rankings in stolen bases per game (No. 69, 1.38), No. 95 in scoring (5.81 runs per game), and No. 96 in triples per game (0.27). Seven different players were also ranked among the Top 250 players ranked in the final statistics release.
Headlining the honored players was senior co-captain Hillary Faas (East Greenbush, NY/Columbia), the 2014 Skyline Conference Player of the Year. She ranks nationally in eight different categories including No. 44 in batting average (.465), while also ranking No. 19 in RBI's with 45 and a 1.22 RBI per game average. On the 2014 season, she led Sage with 45 RBI's and added six home runs, 20 extra-base hits and a .729 slugging percentage. She had a .514 on-base percentage as well in 37 starts at short stop, while boasting a .950 fielding percentage. Twice named the Skyline Conference Player of the Week, she was also cited as the ECAC Metro Division III Player of the Week as well. She led the Gators in almost every offensive category and penned her name to numerous career marks along the way. She played and started 151 consecutive games, while breaking the career marks for most at-bats (498), most doubles (44), most home runs (20), most hits (193), and most RBI's (130). She stands No. 2 in career runs scored (122), while ranking No. 3 in walks (50), No. 11 in stolen bases (15), and No. 10 in career batting average (.388).
Junior utility player Kristen Beikirch (Brockport, NY/Brockport), who was also cited this year for her academic prowess after earning a spot on the 2014 CoSIDA Capital One Academic All-America Second Team, ranks nationally in three categories. She finished the year ranked No. 29 in Division III with her 1.16 runs per game average, while standing No. 49 in stolen bases with a 0.54 per game average. She batted .374 this spring with a team-best 43 runs scored and was a perfect 20-20 in stolen bases. She leads the team with 13 doubles in 37 starts and has played at first and third base, while also working behind the plate as a catcher. As a junior, she connected for a team-best 16-game hitting streak, while boasting 14 multiple-hit games with five multiple RBI games as well in 2014.
On her career, Beikirch owns several career marks as well. Among them, she is the program's career stolen base leader with 53, while also leading the Gators with her 128 runs scored. She stands No. 9 in career games played (124), No. 2 in at-bats (418), No. 2 in hits (175), No. 4 in doubles (29), No. 8 in triples (7), No. 3 in home runs (14), and No. 5 in RBI's (71). She owns a .419 career batting average as well in her time as a Gator.
Rookie pitcher Erika Daigle (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendohowa) completed a successful first season as she led the team with a school single-season strikeout record, having fanned 129 batters. She has a 3.07 ERA in 105 innings of work and went 9-5. She ranks nationally in five categories, including a No. 27 ranking with her 8.6 strikeouts per seven innings of work, while standing No. 64 in overall strikeouts.
2014 Skyline Conference All-Star First Team honoree, sophomore pitcher and designated player Katie Kovage (Hoosick Falls, NY/Hoosick Falls Central), finished her second season at Sage ranked in both pitching and hitting categories. She finished the season with a .382 batting average which was second on the team and added 38 RBI's to finish the year ranked No. 80 with her 1.03 RBI per game average. She added an 11-7 record in the circle with a 3.85 ERA in 94.2 innings of work. She ranked nationally as well with her 5.5 per game strikeout average and with her 11 wins on the season. She is currently No. 9 all-time in the Sage career pitching record book in appearances (43), while ranking No. 11 in innings pitched (196.1), No 13 in complete games (19), No. 5 in victories (21), and No. 5 in strikeouts (135). She owns a 2.92 career ERA in her two seasons with the program.
Rookie outfielder Frankie Pearson (Hoosick Falls, NY/Hoosick Falls Central) added a team-best five triples on the season and ranks No. 31 in total triples and No. 38 with her 0.15 triples per game average, while senior catcher Trish Gaulin (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls) ranked No. 97 in Division III in toughest to strikeout (3.680). Gaulin wraps her career having played in 133 games (No. 3), with 88 hits (No. 14), 335 at-bats (No. 9), and 18 doubles (No. 8) while wearing the Sage uniform.
Also ranked in the final statistics was rookie pitcher Lindsay Brace (Moriah, NY/Moriah). Brace was ranked in strikeouts per seven innings (6.0) and hit batters after hitting just two in 2014, while working in 47 innings with a 3.28 ERA and a 3-2 record and 40 strikeouts.