LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Exactly one week before the 2021 NCAA Division II Softball Championship revs up its engine, the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) unveiled its annual all-region squads on Wednesday afternoon, representing a grand total of 208 student-athletes sporting 114 different programs. The Lincoln Memorial University roster, ranked 5^th by the NFCA four days before Selection Sunday, featured three recipients included in the luxurious pool, headlined by a pair of First Team selections.

Starting pitcher Emma Frost and superstar infielder Ty-Kella Goins continue to rack up their personal trophy cases with nods on the All-Southeast Region First Team unit (with the latter achieving this award for the third time in her remarkable career). Additionally, senior slugger Audrey Petoskey earned a place on the All-Region Second Team unit in what's already been one of the most noteworthy seasons in the history of the program.

All three Lady Railsplitter virtuosos automatically become eligible for inclusion in the 2021 NFCA Division II All-America squads, to be announced on Tuesday, May 25^th two days before the final eight bracket gets underway at a neutral site in Denver, Colorado. NFCA member coaches from all eight regions voted on Wednesday towards the All-Southeast honorees, where the six-team regional tournament sees its first pitch on May 19^th, to conclude 48 hours later at host institution North Georgia in Dahlonega.

Putting an exclamation mark on what's been one of the most accomplished tenures donning the blue and gray in LMU softball history, Goins enters the final stretch of her 5^th season in Harrogate among the region's best players at any position, with evidence pointing to her ascendance of South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year as a graduate. A four-time All-SAC performer and D2CCA All-America two years back, Ty-Kella has maintained her status as one of the Lady Railsplitters' most consistent options on the offensive end as the team's leadoff batter throughout a 36-6 campaign. Beside a .372 hitting clip next to 41 RBI, Goins ranks first on the roster in runs scored (47), hits (55), and doubles (15), launching seven home runs for good measure. With a .642 slugging percentage along with a pair of stolen bases this semester, Goins has struck out only 11 times in 148 at-bats since February to continue her reputation as one of the most well-rounded players in the region. Manning the second base position for the past five years, the Ramseur, N.C. native has calculated 76 putouts and 35 assists to reach a fielding percentage of .982 this spring, recently taking over the 1^st-place spot in most runs scored for a career in the history of the program (currently at 199 and counting).

Joining Goins in the category of All-Southeast Region First Team status, Frost has taken the expectations from a promising freshman season last year and exploded into one of the best throwers in the country, worthy of the 2021 South Atlantic Conference Pitcher of the Year accolade. With less than two full seasons of work under her belt, the Morristown, Tenn. product has developed a fearsome arm against nearly all competitors, striking out a whopping 151 batters in just over 138 innings of action. Behind a team-best ERA of 2.23, Frost's personal record of 18-3 has propelled the Lady Railsplitters to arguably their most prolific regular season of all-time, fanning at least eight batters on 11 different occasions this semester. One of the most staggering pitching performances in LMU history came from the hand of Frost against Mars Hill on March 17^th, where the sophomore struck out 12 batters in a five-inning mercy rule victory, throwing a perfect game in the process for the highest number of K's in a shortened game among all Lincoln Memorial pitchers.

Wrapping up the Lady Railsplitters' impressive trio of All-NCFA Southeast Region standouts, designated player/catcher Petoskey approaches the big dance next week with an emphatic 12 home runs to her plate thus far on the year, just four away from matching the most HR's for a single season in the history of the university. A native of Highland, Michigan, Audrey has amassed the best slugging percentage on the roster at .733 in 42 appearances, totaling 43 hits, nine doubles, and a team-high 46 RBI. Landing 88 total bases (seven behind Goins for the most on the team), the senior has saved her most astounding season in Harrogate for last with her first career all-region recognition. Tying a career-best six RBI vs. Davenport back on February 20^th in one of her handful of eye-popping 2021 performances, Petoskey has been flawless on the defensive end when sliding into the role of catcher, collecting 89 putouts without a single error for a perfect 1.000 fielding clip.

Waiting intensely for the opportunity to compete in their second Southeast Regional Tournament in the past three years, the Lady Railsplitters are in the middle of a layoff that will total 24 days by the time they will finally be able to compete again at UNG, having last taken the field on April 25^th in the school's first ever appearance in the South Atlantic Conference Championship bout.

Thanks to their incredible 2021 campaign up to this point, where they captured the SAC Regular Season title for the second time ever, LMU was awarded by the NCAA last Wednesday with their first ever #1 seed projection in the Southeast Regional rankings that will soon be updated once more. The official selection show for the Division II Softball Championship will be held this Sunday, May 16^th at 10:00 p.m., precisely 72 hours before the regional bracket commences.

As the day for postseason competition draws closer, the full list of All-Region players in the Southeast area can be found below:
 
2021 All-NFCA Southeast Region First Team
P – Kylee Smith (North Georgia)
P – Emma Frost (Lincoln Memorial)
P – Hannah Hogue (Erskine)
C – Shelby Hammontree (North Georgia)
1B – Tatum Brummitt (UNC Pembroke)
2B – Ty-Kella Goins (Lincoln Memorial)
3B – Shannon Smith (Carson-Newman)
SS – Margaret Simmons (North Georgia)
OF – Caitlyn Canady (Columbus State)
OF – Biz Walters (Young Harris)
OF – Sydney Goertzen (Catawba)
UT/P – Hannah Rose Corbin (Columbus State)
DP or UT/Non-P – Kylee Leonhardt (Lenoir-Rhyne)
 
2021 All-NFCA Southeast Region Second Team
P – Jill Dixon (Young Harris)
P – Harlie Duncan (Anderson)
P – Nikole Counts (King)
C – Jill Torres (Young Harris)
1B – Kayson Boatner (Anderson)
2B – Cheyanne Mosteller (North Georgia)
3B – Heaven Maness (Wingate)
SS – Haley Cashwell (Wingate)
OF – Kaylyn Anthony (North Georgia)
OF – Courtlynn Cooney (Mount Olive)
OF – Natalie Corbin (Young Harris)
UT/P – Emily Sappington (Tusculum)
DP or UT/Non-P – Audrey Petoskey (Lincoln Memorial)
 
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