CoSIDA Softball Academic All-District Teams

GREENWOOD, Ind. (July 20, 2021) -- The Franklin Pierce University softball team has had three players earn Academic All-District honors from College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), as announced earlier this month. Senior pitcher Cyrena Zemaitis (Goshen, Conn.), senior infielder Gina Hinckley (Lancaster, Mass.) and graduate student infielder Madi Killebrew (Dana Point, Calif.) were all selected to the CoSIDA Academic All-District I First Team. As a result of their selection, all three will also advance to the Academic All-America ballot.

It is the first career Academic All-District selection for all three, and three selections in the same year represents a high-water mark in program history for the Ravens. No other school in the district, which is comprised of the three East Region conferences, put more than one student-athlete on this spring's 12-player Academic All-District Team.

To be eligible for selection, each student-athlete must own a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average or higher, be at least a sophomore in academic standing and be a starter or significant contributor athletically. The Academic All-District and All-America teams are voted on by sports information directors in the district and nation, respectively.

A health science major with a 3.91 grade-point average, Zemaitis was an All-East Region First Team pick by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) and an All-Northeast-10 Conference Second Team selection this spring, as she finished among the top five in the NE10 in both strikeouts (110) and ERA (1.24). Over 73.2 innings, she allowed 18 runs (13 earned) on 41 hits and 13 walks. Zemaitis' 10.45 strikeouts per seven innings were second-best in the league.

Hinckley is a business management major with a 3.77 GPA and chalked up All-East Second Team accolades from the NFCA, as well as All-NE10 First Team plaudits for her work at first base this spring. She led the NE10 in home runs (10) and slugging (.808), as she put together a .346/.490/.808 slash line with a 1.398 OPS over 78 at-bats (27-for-78). Hinckley added four doubles and a triple along the way, scored 24 runs and drove in 28. The latter figure was good for third in the NE10, while her on-base percentage (.490) ranked fourth.

Killebrew is an energy and sustainability major who finished her undergraduate career with a 3.52 GPA and put together a 3.56 GPA as a grad student. Like Hinckley, Killebrew was an NFCA All-East Region Second Team and All-NE10 First Team honoree on the other side of the infield, at third base. The other half of the team's power duo, Killebrew was second in the NE10 in slugging (.753), behind only Hinckley. Killebrew was also third in the league in both home runs (6) and batting average (.409), as well as fifth in on-base percentage (.476), which allowed her to put together a 1.229 OPS over 93 at-bats (38-for-93).

Academic All-America teams for softball are slated to be announced on Wednesday, July 28.