NPF Draft - USSSA Florida Pride choose LSU’s Brittany Mack with the No. 1 Pick

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Memphis, TN – National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) and its four-affiliate teams held the 2012 NPF College Draft Presented by Miken from the Peabody Hotel in Memphis, TN. The Draft was streamed live through profastpitch.com.

Each team had at least three selections in the five-round draft. The USSSA Florida Pride held the most picks with seven and also the coveted number one slot. Several Draft trades led to USSSA’s position including a 2011 July trade of the Diamonds 2012 first round draft pick for USSSA Pride pitcher, Danielle Spaulding.

For the first pick of the Draft, the Pride selected LSU’s standout ace, Brittany Mack of Round Rock, TX. This marked the third year in a row that the first selection overall was a player from the Southeastern Conference. Mack has been a key factor in the circle for the Tigers since 2009 and in 2011 she was decorated All SEC, All South Region, All NCAA Regional, and NFCA All American. With the number 2 selection, the Chicago Bandits drafted the University of Washington’s stellar outfielder, Kimi Pohlman. The Akron Racers selected Lexy Bennet, shortstop at the University of Texas with the third overall choice. The USSSA Pride chose again in the first round at the fourth spot and made UCLA’s utility player, Andrea Harrison the latest addition to the Pride roster.

USSSA Pride began the second round with the fifth pick overall, and their third choice in five draft selections by choosing Georgia Bulldog infielder/catcher, Kristyn Sandberg. The Chicago Bandits followed with the No. 6 pick overall and selected outfielder, Katie Schroeder of UCLA. With the No. 7 pick, the Akron Racers chose Arizona State pitcher, Hillary Bach. USSSA Pride added Cal’s versatile Val Arioto with the No. 8 selection to close out the second round.

The Carolina Diamonds led off the third round with the number 9 overall selection by choosing UMASS’s decorated pitcher, Sara Plourde. The Chicago Bandits added Hawaii’s pitcher Stephanie Ricketts for the number 10 pick. The Akron Racer’s made their third grab of the night and selected University of Michigan third baseman, Amanda Chidester as the No. 11 overall pick. With the final choice of the third round, the USSSA Pride acquired Michelle Moultrie, from the University of Florida.

The Carolina Diamonds continued the 2012 NPF Draft by adding Georgia Tech’s Kelsi Weseman. The fourth round continued with the Akron Racers taking Alicia Herron of The Ohio State University at number 14 and through a recent trade, the Akron Racers chose again in the No. 15 spot naming Fordham University’s standout pitcher, Jen Mineau. The USSSA Florida Pride rounded out the 4th by selecting Washington’s Nikia Williams.

For the final round of the Draft, the Carolina Diamonds chose pitcher, Angel Bunner from Auburn University. The Bandits with their final selection chose locally with Adrienne Monka from Northwestern as the number 18 selection. The Akron Racers, through a trade with USSSA Pride held their No. 19 spot and nabbed Cal’s speedster, Jamia Reed. The final pick of the draft went to the USSSA Pride who chose University of Louisiana Lafayette’s Christy Orgeron.

NPF Commissioner, Cheri Kempf stated, “I wholeheartedly extend my congratulations to the 20 young women selected in this year’s NPF College Draft. These women represent the future of professional softball and I cannot wait to see them in action beginning in June.”

The 2012 NPF College Draft was dominated by 7 selections from the PAC-12 Conference. Of the 7 choices there were 2 each at the University of Washington, UCLA, and Cal. Arizona State was represented with 1 selection. The SEC, which dominated the 2011 Draft fell into a not-so-close second place with 4 players selected.

Re-broadcast information on the 2012 Draft can be found at http://www.profastpitch.com.

Due to NCAA regulations, an active college senior-athlete is not eligible to sign with her respective franchise until her 2011 season is complete.

2012 NPF Draft Presented by Miken, Results

Round 1 

1 (1) USSSA Florida Pride - Brittany Mack

2 (2) Chicago Bandits - Kimi Pohlman

3 (3) Akron Racers - Lexy Bennett

4 (4) USSSA Florida Pride - Andrea Harrison

Round 2

1 (5) USSSA Pride - Kristyn Sandberg

2 (6) Chicago Bandits - Katie Schroeder

3 (7) Akron Racers - Hillary Bach

4 (8) USSSA Florida Pride - Valerie Arioto

Round 3

1 (9) Carolina Diamonds - Sara Plourde

2 (10) Chicago Bandits - Stephanie Ricketts

3 (11) Akron Racers - Amanda Chidester

4 (12) USSSA Florida Pride - Michelle Moultrie

Round 4

1 (13) Carolina Diamonds - Kelsi Weseman

2 (14) Akron Racers - Alicia Herron

3 (15) Akron Racers - Jen Mineau

4 (16) USSSA Florida Pride - Nikia Williams

Round 5

1 (17) Carolina Diamonds - Angel Bunner

2 (18) Chicago Bandits - Adrienne Monka

3 (19) Akron Racers - Jamia Reed

4 (20) USSSA Florida Pride - Christi Orgeron

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