From University of Rochester Athletics
University of Rochester senior pitcher/infielder Brittany Grage (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford Mendon HS) and sophomore outfielder Shelby Corning (Arvada, CO/Pomona HS) were named to the ECAC Upstate New York Division III Softball Team by the Eastern College Athletic Conference.
The two ECAC honors close out the awards season for the 2015 team. Voting for these awards was conducted among the head softball coaches in Upstate New York.
This is Grage's second consecutive ECAC honor as a pitcher. She was a Second Team selection last year. It is her ninth honor for softball this year. Earlier this spring, she was named a First Team All-American by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA), First Team All-Northeast Region by the NFCA, Liberty League Player of the Year and First Team All-Liberty League, First Team All-University Athletic Association and to the UAA's All-Tournament Team (selected at the league championship tournament in Florida in March). Grage was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Liberty League playoffs. Additionally, she was named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team.
The ECAC honor is the first for Corning. She was named First Team All-Liberty League in a vote of the league head coaches. Rochester won the Liberty League regular-season title (10-2). The Yellowjackets hosted the league's post-season tournament and posted three consecutive shutouts to claim the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs.
Corning was also cited this spring for her academic prowess. She was named to the All-Academic Teams of the UAA and the Liberty League. She was elected to the Capital One Academic All-District Three First Team after voting by members of the College Sports Information Directors of America.
Grage started all 42 games for Rochester this season (team's final mark was 29-13). She led the team in average (.419, 57-136). She scored 35 runs (tied for the team lead), hit 11 doubles (second), two triples, and 15 home runs (which is a single-season record. She drove in 58 runs (which ties the single-season mark.). Her slugging percentage was .860 and her on-base percentage was .461. On the mound, she had a 14-6 record with a 2.03 ERA and one save. She pitched in 26 games (22 starts). She had 13 complete games and seven shutouts. In 124.1 innings pitched, she allowed 96 hits, 53 runs (36 earned runs), walked 34, and struck out 102. She allowed 15 doubles, no triples, and three home runs. Opponents hit .205 against her.
Corning batted .352 for the Yellowjackets this year, getting 32 hits in 91 at-bats. She led the team in triples with six. She was third in runs scored with 24. She struck out only three times in 91 appearances. In the classroom, she held a 3.60 cumulative grade point average on a 4.00 scale, majoring in Environmental Sciences. She has done research in her field on earthquakes in Africa. In the fall, she will take part in the Study Abroad Program, heading to Germany. She has worked on Relay for Life in the Rochester area. At home in Colorado, she teaches youths to build hiking trails and to repair ecosystems.