The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Attfield Named Preseason Top 50 Offensive Player
2/10/2016 12:00:00 AM | Softball
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Fastpitch News released its 2016 Preseason Top 50 NCAA Softball Offensive Players and selected UAB senior shortstop Caitlin Attfield as one of the best offensive players in the nation.
Attfield was No. 21 and is one of just four Conference USA student-athletes to earn a selection and is ranked ahead of SEC standouts, Auburn’s Tiffany Howard and LSU’s Sahvanna Jaquish amongst others.
The honor adds to the Niagara Falls, N.Y., native’s preseason honors as the senior was selected to the Preseason All-Conference USA Team and was named the 2016 Preseason C-USA Player of the Year.
Attfield returns for her senior campaign after a record-breaking junior season where the shortstop earned the first C-USA Player of the Year honors in UAB history.
Batting at a .473 average last season, Attfield shattered her own single-season school record (.425 in 2014) and ranked seventh in the nation in hitting. The shortstop also tied with fellow senior Sara Beth Williamson for UAB’s single-season on-base percentage (.511).
En route to her record-breaking clip, Attfield recorded 80 hits, eight shy of taking down her own school record she set in 2014. The senior accounts for three of UAB’s top-five, single-season individual hit totals.
Additionally, Attfield finished with 43 runs scored, bested only by Martina Landrum’s school record of 47 in 2010.
Last season, the shortstop led the Blazers in average, hits, runs scored, doubles, total bases and stolen bases while tying for the team-lead in on-base percentage (.511).
Attfield is the Blazers’ career leader in batting average (.417), on-base percentage (.470), slugging percentage (.523) and hits (237).
Attfield and the Blazers kick off the 2016 season Thursday in Mobile, Ala., against in-state and 25th-ranked South Alabama.
For more information on the UAB softball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UABSoftball). For more on all Blazer sports teams follow the official social media accounts of UAB Athletics on Twitter (@UABAthletics), on Facebook (Facebook.com/UAB.Blazers), on Instagram (@uabathletics) or on Snapchat (@uabathletics).
