FARMVILLE, Va. –  With its second consecutive Big South regular season crown in hand, the Longwood softball team added to its trophy case in a big way Tuesday with a group headlined by back-to-back Big South Pitcher of the Year Elizabeth McCarthy and back-to-back Big South Coach of the Year Kathy Riley.
 
A product of Dunnsville, Va., McCarthy becomes the fifth pitcher in Big South history to capture back-to-back Big South Pitcher of the Year honors, while Riley is the first coach to be named Big South Coach of the Year in back-to-back seasons since Mickey Dean in 2011 and 2012.
 
McCarthy was one of four Lancers on the All-Big South first team, joining the senior trio of Carly Adams, Jamie Barbour and Emily Murphy. Meanwhile freshman pitcher Sydney Gay and redshirt freshman Karleigh Donovan were named to the second team and the all-freshmen team.
 
In addition, outfielders Krista Kelly and Glenn Walters were named Honorable Mention All-Big South. Kelsey Sweeney was the ninth Lancer to be honored, receiving a nod to the Big South All-Academic Team.
 
Overall, the Lancers matched a Big South record with its eight players named to all-conference teams, joining Coastal Carolina (2000), Winthrop (2007) and Radford (2008).
 
McCarthy captures her second straight Big South Pitcher of the Year accolade after a season in which she led a Lancer pitching staff that ranks among the top 20 in the nation with a 2.28 team ERA. One of two pitchers in program history to strike out more than 500 batters in her career, McCarthy has been named to an all-conference team in each of her three seasons. She heads into the Big South Tournament with an 18-9 mark and a 2.32 ERA, while ranking in the top-five in the league in wins, ERA, opponent batting average, innings pitched and strikeouts.
 
Meanwhile, Riley captures her second straight Big South Coach of the Year honor, as she led her squad to a 33-17 overall record and a 19-5 conference record en route to becoming back-to-back Big South regular season champions.  Riley led her squad to 30-plus wins for the 12th time in her 19-year career and clinched her fourth straight season with at least 30 or more victories. The 2015 and 2016 Big South Coach of the Year hasn't posted a season below the .500 mark in her 19-year career at Longwood.
 
Murphy – a three-time Big South All-First Team selection – joins a select group of 17 student-athletes in Big South history to be named to an all-conference team in each of her four seasons and the first such player since Longwood joined the league in 2013. Murphy, along with Walters, is one of two players on Longwood's roster to start in all 50 games this season and finished among the top-four in the league with a .369 batting average while ranking among the top-five in on-base percentage, slugging, RBI and sac flies. She needs just two home runs to become the third player in program history to reach the 50-home run mark for her career.
 
Adams, who patrols the middle of the infield along with Murphy, earns her second Big South all-conference honor and first since the 2013 season. She ranked eighth in the league with a .348 average and led the Lancers with 14 multi-hit games, including seven with at least three hits, which is also a team-high.
 
Longwood's fourth first-team selection, Barbour earns all-conference honors for the first time in her four-year career. A local product of Amelia, Va., Barbour has been a steady force on the right side of the diamond at first base. Ranked sixth in the conference with a .366 batting average and leading the Lancers in conference play with a .486 average, Barbour has enjoyed her best season at the plate in her final year. Since moving to leadoff, Longwood is 13-5 in 18 games with three of those losses coming to then-No. 2 Auburn.
 
Murphy, Adams and Barbour are set to leave Longwood as the winningest class in Longwood softball history, as the trio has amassed 148 victories to go along with two Big South Championships, two Big South regular season titles, two NCAA Regional appearances and one NCAA Tournament victory.
 
In her first season at Longwood, Gay has enjoyed a sensational rookie campaign with a 14-6 overall record and had the league's second-best ERA at 2.11. In addition to earning second-team accolades, Gay was named to the all-freshman team. A product of Carrollton, Va., she led the Big South in batting average against and strikeouts looking. She also ranked among the top-15 in the NCAA among rookies in ERA.
 
A product of Dinwiddie, Va., Donovan was named to the second-team and earned all-freshman honors after ranking fourth on the squad with a .321 average and hitting .364 in conference action. She ranked third on Longwood's roster in RBI and has seven multi-hit games this season while posting three games with multiple RBI. Heading into this week's tournament, Donovan has a seven-game hitting streak.
 
Kelly was named to the Honorable Mention All-Big South Team, as she earns the first all-conference honors of her career. A product of Rockville, Md., Kelly enjoyed a breakout season on the diamond. A versatile player who played four different positions throughout the year, Kelly became a mainstay at left field where she made 32 starts. With a breakout season of a .272 batting average, Kelly had seven multi-hit games.
 
One of two players on Longwood's roster to play in all 50 games this year, Walters earns all-conference accolades for the second straight season. The dynamic sophomore has enjoyed a season in which she batted .280 after opening the season with a 28-game reached base streak. Longwood's starting center fielder, Walters ranked sixth in the league in runs scored, third in triples and seventh in stolen bases.
 
In addition, Sweeney was named to the Big South All-Academic Team. A major in biology, Sweeney on the season posted eight multi-hit games and the squad was a perfect 5-0 record when she homered.
 
The Lancers open the Big South Tournament in Rock Hill, S.C., Wednesday, May 11 at 2:30 p.m., as the top seed against the winner of eighth-seeded Gardner-Webb and ninth-seeded Winthrop.  The play-in game between the Eagles and Runnin' Bulldogs is Wednesday at 9 a.m.

2016 Softball All-Conference and Annual Award Winners

First-Team All-Conference
OF - Bri Chiusano, Sr., Coastal Carolina
OF - Taty Forbes, Fr., Coastal Carolina
OF - Kelsie Sanchez, Jr., Presbyterian College
1B - Jamie Barbour, Sr., Longwood
2B - Carly Adams, Sr., Longwood
SS - Emily Murphy, Sr., Longwood
3B - Rachel McCollum, Fr., Campbell
C - Morgan Noad, Sr., Coastal Carolina
P - Elizabeth McCarthy, Jr., Longwood
P - Julia DiMartino, Fr., Liberty
DP - Amber Schisler, Jr., Campbell
UTL - Kelsey Dominik, Sr., Coastal Carolina

Second-Team All-Conference
OF - Amanda Matsumoto, Jr., Charleston Southern
OF - Jaclyn Amader, Fr., Liberty
OF - Taesha DuBoise, Jr., Campbell
1B - Mackenzie Conrad, Sr., Coastal Carolina
2B - Erin Ruff, Sr., Presbyterian College
SS - Marissa Gagliano, Fr., Radford
3B - Karleigh Donovan, R-Fr., Longwood
C - Caitlyn Emberson, Fr., Charleston Southern
P - Abby Morrow, Jr., Radford
P - Sydney Gay, Fr., Longwood
DP - Annie Robinson, Soph., Coastal Carolina
UTL - Megan Anderson, Fr., Presbyterian College

Honorable Mention All-Conference
Glenn Walters, OF, Soph., Longwood
Krista Kelly, OF, Soph., Longwood
Sydney Seigler, P, Sr., Presbyterian College
Katie Baker, UTL, Jr., Campbell
Tori Zavodny, OF, Soph., Liberty

All-Freshman Team
Taty Forbes, OF, Coastal Carolina
Julia DiMartino, P, Liberty
Sydney Gay, P, Longwood
Rachel McCollum, 3B, Campbell
Megan Anderson, UTL, Presbyterian
Caitlyn Emberson, C, Charleston Southern
Marissa Gagliano, SS, Radford
Jaclyn Amader, OF, Liberty
Ashley Guillette, P, Coastal Carolina
Karleigh Donovan, 3B, Longwood
Sarah Robertson, 2B, Liberty
Arizona Pilgrim, P, Charleston Southern

All-Academic Team
Katie Baker, P, Jr., Campbell
Stevi Johnson, UTL, Jr., Charleston Southern
Mackenzie Conrad, P/INF, Sr., Coastal Carolina
Jill Blank, OF, Sr., Gardner-Webb
Kassidy McCoy, 3B, Sr., Liberty
Kelsey Sweeney, DP, Soph., Longwood
Erin Ruff, 2B, Sr., Presbyterian College
Kayla Bishton, OF/DP, Jr., Radford
Zharne Glover, CF, Sr., Winthrop

Player of the Year
Morgan Noad, C, Sr., Coastal Carolina

Pitcher of the Year
Elizabeth McCarthy, Jr., Longwood

Freshman of the Year
Taty Forbes, OF, Coastal Carolina

Coach of the Year
Kathy Riley, Longwood

Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Mackenzie Conrad, P/INF, Sr., Coastal Carolina

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