2018 #AESB Awards Bestowed on Eve of League Championship
VESTAL, N.Y. — After capturing the 2018 #AESB regular-season title on the season’s final day, Albany took home two of the conference’s four major awards as the annual America East softball awardees were announced at the league’s annual banquet on Tuesday evening on the campus of Binghamton University, site of the 2018 America East Softball Championship.
The Great Danes’ Celeste Verdolivo earned Pitcher of the Year honors while her head coach, Chris Cannatta, garnered Coach of the Year accolades. Stony Brook’s Melissa Rahrich was named Player of the Year and UMass Lowell’s Lovina Capria was chosen Rookie of the Year.
The 2018 #AESB awards, along with the All-Conference teams, were determined in a vote by the league's seven head coaches who were not permitted to vote for their own players.
Complete Awards Listing
Player of the Year
Melissa Rahrich, So., Stony Brook
- Just the second Seawolf to earn the award joining Bria Green (2015).
- Leads the league in batting average (.433), slugging percentage (.646) and total bases (82).
- Has belted six home runs and nine doubles.
- Drove in 27 runs and scored 28 in the regular season.
- Also the first-team All-Conference utility player.
Pitcher of the Year
Celeste Verdolivo, Jr., Albany
- She’s the sixth Great Dane to win the award and the first since Brittany MacFawn in 2014.
- Went 13-2 in the circle this season, tying for the league lead in victories.
- Was second with a 1.83 ERA and had a 1.77 ERA in conference play.
- Held opposing hitters to a .218 average, second in the conference, allowing just 84 hits in 103 1/3 innings pitched.
- Also a first-team All-Conference pitcher and All-Academic selection.
Rookie of the Year
Lovina Capria, Fr., UMass Lowell
- Second-straight River Hawk to earn the honor after Courtney Cashman did so last year.
- Ranks third overall in the league in wins (11), strikeouts (92) and ERA (2.70)
- Was even better in league play going 5-0 with a conference-best 1.72 ERA and 45 strikeouts against just eight walks in 44 2/3 innings pitched.
- Also a second-team All-Conference and All-Rookie choice.
Coach of the Year
Chris Cannatta, Albany
- Cannatta is Coach of the Year for a league-record fifth time and is being recognized for the first time since 2008.
- The Great Danes captured their first America East regular-season title since 2013 and sixth overall.
- Winners of eight in a row, Albany is a league-best 28-13 overall this season.
Twenty-four players earned All-Conference recognition while 13 were All-Rookie choices and 11 garnered All-Academic recognition. View a complete list of All-Conference, All-Rookie & All-Academic selections.
The 2018 America East Softball Championship begins on Wednesday with No. 4 Maine facing No. 5 Binghamton at 11 a.m. and No. 3 Stony Brook taking on No. 6 UMBC at 1:30 p.m. The two losing teams will play an elimination game at 4 p.m. The top seeds, No. 1 Binghamton and No. 2 Maine, will be in action on Thursday, along with another elimination game. Three more games will be played Friday while the championship games will be played on Saturday. The league champion will receive an automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA Softball Championship.
Stay up-to-date on the tournament by visiting Championship Central for streaming and live stats links as well as box scores, highlights and recaps following each round in addition to team information, tournament history and more.
Follow @AmericaEast and @AEDigitalNet on Twitter to get the real-time championship updates. Use the #AEChamps and #AESB hashtags to join the conversation.
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field.
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