St. Bonaventure softball trio earns All-Conference accolades :: Bricker named A-10 Student-Athlete of the Year

May 6, 2008

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. - Senior Brianna Bricker highlighted a trio from the St. Bonaventure softball team to garner Atlantic 10 All-Conference accolades as she was named the A-10 Student-Athlete of the Year as well as earning a spot on the All-Conference second team and Academic All-Conference team, as announced by the league office Tuesday evening.

Sophomore ace Sherri Thompson and freshman Kara Morenus joined Bricker with postseason distinctions as Thompson became the 13th player in program history to be selected to the All-Conference first team, while Morenus earned All-Rookie team honors following her first season in the Brown and White.

In her final foray with the Bonnies, Bricker has continued to excel on and off the diamond as the senior management sciences major carries a cumulative grade point average of 3.92 over her four-year career at St. Bonaventure. This marks Bricker's second straight appearance on the Academic All-Conference team, while she also earned a spot on the 2007 ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District I second team last year. Bricker is just the second ever Bonnie to be crowned Student-Athlete of the Year following Kim Dodson in 2004.

The Albion, Pa. product is enjoying her best season at the plate in 2008 by batting at a career-high .346 clip. Bricker leads the Bonnies in average, runs (30), hits (47), home runs (6) and stolen bases (5) while sitting second on the club in RBI with 18 runs batted in. Thanks to her six homers this year, Bricker etched her name atop the all-time Bona home run chart with 23 career yard balls.

Thompson earns second straight A-10 accolade.

Bricker's production at the plate this year has also vaulted her into the top 10 of nearly every career batting category, ranking among the school's all-time best in hits (133/4th), RBI (60/t-6th) and runs scored (80/4th) heading into this week's Atlantic 10 Championship. After a one-year absence from one of the two All-Conference teams, Bricker returns as a member of one of the top two units after being selected to the first team following her sophomore season.

After a season in which she became the first Bonnie ever to garner All-Rookie honors while establishing a league-low 1.15 ERA, Thompson captured first team honors in just her second season of collegiate softball. The 5-8 righty established herself as one of the most dominant hurlers in the A-10 during her sophomore campaign as she ranks among the league's best in multiple pitching categories. Heading into Thursday's A-10 tournament contest, Thompson ranks second in the league in earned run average (1.49), third in innings pitched (202.2), fourth in strikeouts (168), second in wins (16) and tied for second in starts (28). She was one of only four sophomores selected to the first team in 2008.

This season, she has shattered nearly every St. Bonaventure single-season pitching record, highlighted by the highest one-year strikeout total with 168 K's. The Ulysses, Pa. product has been close to unhittable in A-10 action as she has posted an 11-3 mark in conference contests with an ERA below one at 0.83 thanks to six shutouts. Thompson captured one A-10 Pitcher of the Week honor this season.

Morenus led the Bonnies with 22 RBI.

Morenus becomes the second Bonnie in as many years to make the All-Rookie squad. The Horseheads, N.Y. native enjoyed a successful first season with the Bonnies as she entrenched her spot behind the plate following the graduation of four-year starter Anna Nagro. Morenus paced the Brown and White at the plate for much of the season with her bat by leading the club with 22 RBI and sitting tied for the club-lead with nine doubles. She also leads the Bonnies with six multiple RBI contests, including a pair of games with three runs batted in. The first-year backstop has saved her best performances for A-10 action as she is one of two Bonnies to bat over .300 in league play with a .333 clip at the plate. Morenus enters this week's tournament as the reigning A-10 Rookie of the Week

The Bonnies return to action on Thursday, May 8 at 4:00 p.m. in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Championship after earning a bye from the opening round. Second seeded St. Bonaventure will take on the winner of the Charlotte/Saint Louis contest.