Yellowjacket Softball Hands Out Season Awards (May 3, 2004)

BILLINGS, MT – The Montana State-Billings softball team honored four players with season awards on Sunday.  The Yellowjackets concluded the season with a four-game sweep of Division I Northern Colorado over the weekend to finish 27-28 overall.  It was the program’s most wins and best winning percentage in its four year history.

Joey Ehnes (Jr., P/2B, Great Falls, MT) was named the Defensive Player of the Year after setting school records for strikeouts and victories.  She struck out 261 batters and finished with a 21-16 record.  She ranked second in the Pacific West Conference for victories, strikeouts, and opposing batting average (.211).  Her 1.90 ERA was fourth in the league.  Ehnes also had a solid year at the plate, leading the Yellowjackets in RBI (30) and runs scored (29).

Joey Ehnes

“What can I say about Joey?” said Yellowjacket head coach Jeff Aumend.  “She is one of the best pitchers in the NCAA West region.  She’s second in our conference in strikeouts and third in the region in victories. Striking out 261 batters and winning 21 of your team’s 27 games is a phenomenal accomplishment for a 5-3, 130-pound junior pitcher!”

Juniors Cami Rainey (SS, Terreton, ID) and Layne Pavey (C, Spokane, WA) were named co-Offensive Players of the Year.  Rainey led the team with a .315 batting average to rank sixth in the PacWest.  She ranked eighth in the conference for slugging percentage (.479), second for runs scored (tied with Ehnes with 29), second for total hits (52), fourth for doubles (12), third for home runs (5), second for total bases (79) and second for sac bunts (11).  Rainey also led the team in defensive assists with 104 while posting a .929 fielding percentage.

Cami Rainey

“Cami is our best all-around athlete and gives us diversity in the lead-off spot,” said Aumend. “Not many lead-off hitters register 12 doubles and five home runs but still, occasionally, drop down a base-hit bunt. She had a great year, both on offense and defense.”

Pavey was the PacWest home run champion, belting eight of the Jackets’ league-best 32 homers on the year.  Along with hitting for power, Pavey also finished with a .307 batting average, third on the team.  Her .509 slugging percentage and .365 on base percentage led the Yellowjackets.  In the PacWest, she also ranked sixth for slugging percentage, ninth for runs scored (24), fourth for total hits (50), fourth for RBI (28), seventh for doubles (9), first for total bases (83) and ninth for walks (14).

Layne Pavey

“Layne is our hitting guru,” said Aumend.  “She loves to talk hitting, teach hitting, learn more about hitting and most importantly, she just loves to hit!  She is a hitter who makes great adjustments, not only in a game, but in each at bat.  She’s becoming one of the most feared hitters in the West region.”

Junior Sara Hanley (3B, Kalispell, MT) was named the Most Improved Player after finishing second on the team with a .308 batting average.  Known as an RBI producer in her first two seasons with the Yellowjackets, Hanley also hit for average this season and became one of the top defensive third basemen in the conference.  She ranked tenth in the conference for batting average, first for total hits (53) and eighth for total bases (67).  Hanley was second on the team for defensive assists with 92 and had a .904 fielding percentage.

Sara Hanley

“Sara has been a starter for three years and one of our top hitters,” said Aumend, “but this year she returned to her original position of third base and has played as well, defensively, as any third baseman in the West region.  College players have to get in the face of the bunter, be able to throw out lead runners and make big plays. Sara played amazing defense in the last two months of the season.”