LOUISVILLE, Ky. (May 13, 2021) – The Franklin Pierce University softball had four players named to the 2021 National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division II All-Region Teams with senior pitcher Cyrena Zemaitis (Goshen, Conn.) and freshman outfielder Ashley Cangiano (North Attleboro, Mass.) highlighting the Raven selections with East Region First Team honors.

TO VIEW THE NFCA ALL-REGION RELEASE PLEASE CLICK HERE.

This year's squads are comprised of 209 student-athletes from 114 programs Division II programs. The awards honor softball student-athletes from the Association's eight regions with first and second-team selections. NFCA member coaches from each respective region voted on the teams, and all the honorees now become eligible for selection to the 2021 NFCA Division II All-America squads which will be announced on Tuesday, May 25th.

Graduate third base Madi Killebrew (Dana Point, Calif.) and senior first base Gina Hinckley (Lancaster, Mass.) were chosen to the East Region Second Team.

"I am so happy for these four young women to be recognized for their effort and achievements on the field," said head coach Andy Klaus. "They are completely deserving of these honors due to their hard work and complete dedication. As wonderful as the awards are for these four individuals, our entire team shares in the awards – everyone working together allows the team to succeed and for the opportunity for these four to be recognized individually."

Zemaitis, a Northeast-10 Conference Second Team honoree recorded an 11-2 mark across 73.2 innings for Pierce with a single-season record low 1.24 earned run average, 110 strikeouts, and six complete games. The one-time NE10 Pitcher of the Week ranked second in the league in K/7 (10.45), third in strikeouts, fourth in wins, and fifth in ERA. She had six double-digit strikeout games and hurled a 14 strikeout (matched the program single-game record) no-hitter in the season opener. She is the program's career leader in wins (31) and ERA (1.66) while ranking second in punchouts (420).

Only a freshman, Cangiano, an NE10 First Team player slashed .356/.376/.578 with a homer, 20 runs batted in, seven doubles, and five triples. The two-time NE10 Rookie of the Week was third in the conference in triples, 10th in hits (32), and an RBI. Her five three-baggers tied for the second-most during a single season in program history.

The graduate student Killebrew, who transferred from Boston University a year ago was an NE10 First Team athlete. The two-time NE10 Player of the Week turned in a .409/.476/.753 triple-slash line with six homers, 24 RBI, 12 doubles, and 27 runs scored. Killebrew paced the league in doubles, was second in hits (38), HR, slugging percentage (.753), third in runs, and batting average (.409). She set the single-game program record with six RBI as well.

Hinckley was a four-year Raven and an NE10 First Team award winner at First Base. The Raven senior produced a .346/.490/.808 line leading the conference in HR (10), RBI (28), walks (21) and SLG (.808) while ranking fourth in on-base percentage (.490). She set the program's single-season HR mark with 10. On defense, Hinckley paced the conference in double plays (8) and was third in the league in putouts (187). In the career record books, she ranks second all-time in HR (16) and ninth in RBI (51) for the Ravens.

FPU finished their season with the most wins in program history at 21-9, 18-6 NE10, and their first-ever berth in the NE10 Tournament.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://fpuravens.com). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce softball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://fpuravens.com). You can also follow the softball team on Twitter (https://twitter.com/FPUSoftball_) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/fpu_ravens_softball).