Softball Lands Four on All-NEAC

Junior Danielle Gravel (left) earned the NEAC North Pitcher of the Year while sophomore Kelly Proper (right) earned the NEAC North Player of the Year for Keuka, which captured the NEAC North regular season championship (photos courtesy of Ed Webber, Keuka College Sports Information Department).

The Keuka College softball team captured another North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) North Division championship, and the Storm landed four student-athletes on the NEAC’s annual all-conference squads.

Sophomore Kelly Proper (Silver Springs, NY/Letchworth) was named the North’s Player of the Year while junior Danielle Gravel (Sidney, NY) earned the North’s Pitcher of the Year honors.

Proper and Gravel were joined on the first-team by junior Jill Hart (Cowlesville, NY/Iroquois) while junior Brooke Lovell (Arkport, NY/Arkport) garnered second-team All-NEAC, the conference announced Thursday.

The all-conference teams honor the top 20 players in each division as selected by the conference coaches, regardless of their position.

Proper, a first baseman/catcher, leads Keuka (15-13, 15-5 NEAC) in batting average (.381), hits (32), home runs (3) and RBI (21) as the Storm claimed the NEAC North’s regular season title.

Proper batted .412 (28-for-68) against NEAC opponents with two HRs, 19 RBI, 15 runs scored, 7 doubles and 1 triple.

She hit safely in Keuka’s first eight games and 20 of 24 on the year. She has 10 multi-hit games, including going 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in a loss to Geneseo (April 9) and was 3-for-4 with three RBI during a 13-0 win over Wells (April 17).

During a 12-game stretch from April 7-20, Proper was 18-for-38 (.474) with 2 HRs and 15 RBI. She currently ranks seventh in the conference in batting average, fourth in home runs and tied for 13th in RBI.

Gravel, a two-time NEAC North Pitcher of the Year, leads Keuka with an 8-6 record and a 2.78 ERA. She has struck out 44 and allowed only 12 walks in 85 2/3 innings pitched. Gravel has tossed 12 complete games and has one shutout on the year.

After starting the season 1-4, Gravel picked up her game and won seven straight starts from April 7-28. During her seven-game win streak, Gravel allowed 15 runs (six earned) on 32 hits in with only two walks in 42 innings pitched.

In earning back-to-back wins over SUNYIT, Gravel held the Wildcats to three runs (all unearned) on nine hits in a pair of complete-game victories.

It is Gravel’s second straight first-team All-NEAC selection.

Hart, an outfielder, has played in 28 games, all starts, with a .363 batting average with 20 RBI, 17 runs scored, 7 doubles and 3 triples on the year.

Hart, a two-time first-team All-NEAC selection, recorded 10 multi-hit games, including going 3-for-4 with two RBI during a 12-8 loss to SUNYIT (April 21).

During a five-game stretch April 17-20, Hart was 8-for-18 (.444) with 10 RBI and six runs scored. Defensively, she did not record and error and made 41 putouts with two assists.

Lovell, a third baseman/outfielder, has appeared in and started 26 games. She is batting .203 with 1 HR, 10 RBI, 12 runs scored, 3 doubles and 1 triple on the year.

She has swiped a team-leading eight stolen bases (in eight attempts) and has recorded three multi-hit games this year. This is her second time earning All-NEAC honors.

Keuka, the six-time defending NEAC postseason champions, begins its title defense at 10 a.m. Saturday against the winner of SUNY Cobleskill and Wilson College.