SAN FRANCISCO -The 2015 Pac-12 Softball All-Conference honors, including All-Pac-12, All-Freshman and All-Defensive teams, were announced today by the Conference office. In a vote of the Conference’s head coaches, UCLA senior Ally Carda has been named the 2015 Pac-12 Softball Player of the Year, OREGON junior Cheridan Hawkins was voted Pitcher of the Year, ARIZONA senior Hallie Wilson garnered Defensive Player of the Year honors and Oregon’s Jenna Lilley was tabbed Freshman of the Year. UTAH head coach Amy Hogue was voted Coach of the Year for the second-straight season, while UCLA’s Allexis Bennett was crowned the Pac-12 Softball Batting Champion with a Conference-leading .513 batting average. 

Pac-12 Player of the Year – Ally Carda, UCLA
Carda repeats as Pac-12 Softball Player of the Year after leading UCLA both on the mound and at the plate. Through the regular season, she collected a 26-6 record, starting nearly half of UCLA’s contests, and posted a 2.28 earned run average, striking out 255 batters in her 187.2 innings pitched. The Elk Grove, Calif., native also hit a .312 clip, scoring 52 runs and hitting 13 doubles, both of which were the second-most for the Bruins. A four-time Pitcher of the Week this year, Carda has earned pitcher of the week honors seven times in her career. She was also named the Louisville Slugger/NFCA National DI Pitcher of the Week on Mar. 10 and was a top-26 finalist for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year as well as a top-10 finalist for the Senior CLASS Award. A 2014 NFCA first team All-American, Carda is a two-time first team All-Pac-12 honoree and is also a member of the 2015 USA Softball Women’s National Team. 

Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year – Cheridan Hawkins, Oregon
Hawkins earns Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year for the second-consecutive season after a dominant junior season. The junior finished the regular season with a 27-3 record and a 1.39 ERA that ranks 10th in the nation, posting 224 strikeouts in 165.2 innings of work while holding opposing batters to a .140 batting average. A two-time top-10 finalist for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, Hawkins helped the Ducks earn the No. 2-overall seed in the NCAA Softball Championship, where UO will host its fourth-consecutive Regional. She has earned Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week five times this year alone, bringing her all-time total to 11 weekly honors, which is tied for the fifth-most in Pac-12 history. The Anderson, Calif., native is a two-time first team All-Pac-12 honoree and was a first team NFCA All-American last year. 

Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year – Hallie Wilson, Arizona
Wilson has anchored the first-base corner for the Wildcats this season, helping UA to the No. 12 seed in the NCAA Softball Championship, marking Arizona’s 29th-consecutive postseason berth. Wilson has picked up 343 putouts through the regular season, which leads the team and is fourth in the Pac-12. Her 144 putouts in Pac-12 play alone is tied for third in the Conference. The senior has also fielded 20 double plays, the second-most in the Pac-12, with 12 of them coming in league play. A two-time first team All-Pac-12 honoree and a first team NFCA All-American in 2014, Wilson has a .381 batting average at the leadoff position for Arizona, scoring a team-leading 58 runs and posting 45 RBI. She also ranks in the top 10 in the league in total plate appearances (tied first, 220), runs scored (third, 58), at bats (fifth, 176), and hits (tied eighth, 67). 

Pac-12 Freshman of the Year – Jenna Lilley, Oregon
Lilley burst onto the collegiate scene in her first year with the Ducks, posting a .448 batting average and a .550 on-base percentage that are both second in the Pac-12. The freshman also ranks sixth in runs scored (56), seventh in stolen bases (15 on 17 attempts) and eighth in doubles (15). She has held down the hot corner for Oregon, posting a fielding percentage of .943 as UO’s primary third-base player with 70 assists and 30 putouts. Lilley, a native of North Canton, Ohio, has started all 52 games for the Ducks, the only UO player to have done so this season. She was voted Pac-12 Player of the Week three times and Pac-12 Freshman of the Year once for four weekly honors in her first year. Lilley also won USA Softball National Player of the Week on Feb. 24, as well as Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Player of the Week on Feb. 24 and Apr. 27. She is a top-10 finalist for NFCA DI Freshman of the Year. 

Pac-12 Coach of the Year – Amy Hogue, Utah
Hogue’s Utes finished fourth in the Pac-12 after going 34-17 with a 12-11 record in Pac-12 play, the most Conference victories since Utah joined the Pac-12 in 2011-12. The 34 regular-season wins were the most since Utah tallied 35 victories in 2006. Hogue led the Utes to an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, the first for Utah since 2006, as well as a top-25 ESPN.com/USA Softball ranking, the first in school history. Five different Utes won Pac-12 Player or Freshman of the Week, including senior Kate Dickman, who set a school single-season record in doubles with 20 on the year. 

Pac-12 Batting Champion – Allexis Bennett, UCLA
Bennett earns Pac-12 Batting Champion honors after posting a crushing .513 batting average through the regular season, which ranks second in the nation and first in the Pac-12. Bennett, a junior outfielder for the Bruins, has posted 82 hits, which also leads the Pac-12, on 160 at bats. She is also fifth in the league in on-base percentage with a .540 mark, and is 10th in runs scored with 51. The Corona, Calif., native is a top-10 finalist for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year and earns her first-career first team all-Conference honor after being named honorable mention the past two seasons. 

2015 PAC-12 ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS

* - 2014 first team All-Pac-12 honoree
^ - 2014 second team All-Pac-12 honoree
! - 2013 first team All-Pac-12 honoree
# - 2013 second team All-Pac-12 honoree
$ - 2012 first team All-Pac-12 honoree
% - 2012 second team All-Pac-12 honoree
@ - 2011 first team All-Pac-12 honoree

Honorable Mention (receiving at least one vote): Erin Ashby, Sr., STAN; Heather Bowen, Fr., UTAH; Hailey Decker, Jr., ORE; Nikki Girard, Jr., ASU; Geri Ann Glasco, Jr., ORE; Gracie Goulder, Sr., UCLA; Natalie Hampton, So., OSU; Breanna Macha, Fr., ASU; Mikela Manewa, Jr., OSU; Mo Mercado, So., ARIZ; Beverly Miller, Jr., OSU; Kylee Perez, Fr., UCLA; Mandie Perez, So., ARIZ; Kobie Pettis, Fr., CAL; Sierra Rodriguez, Sr., ASU; Kylie Sorenson, So., STAN; Casey Stangel, So., WASH; Kristen Stewart, Jr., UTAH; Kelli Suguro, Sr., WASH; Chelsea Suitos, Sr., ARIZ; Gwen Svekis, Fr., ORE; Taylor Van Zee, Fr., WASH; Miranda Viramontes, Fr., UTAH; Britt Vonk, Sr., CAL; Tylyn Wells, Sr., STAN. 

Honorable Mention (receiving at least one vote): Mckenna Arriola, OSU; Krystal Aubert, WASH; Heather Bowen, UTAH; Johanna Grauer, UCLA, Ashleigh Hughes, ARIZ; Lovie Lopez, OSU; Trysten Melhart, WASH; Victoria Molina, STAN; Taurie Pogue, CAL; Selina Ta’amilo, UCLA.   

Honorable Mention (receiving at least one vote): Allexis Bennett, UCLA; Kayla Bonstrom, STAN; Ally Carda, UCLA; Cheyenne Cordes, CAL; Kate Dickman, UTAH; Dani Gilmore, OSU; Nikki Girard, ASU; Chelsea Goodacre, ARIZ; Jazmyn Jackson, CAL; Kylee Lahners, WASH; Jenna Lilley, ORE; Sashel Palacios, ASU; Jessica Plaza, STAN; Jennifer Soria, ASU; Kristen Stewart, UTAH; Kelli Suguro, WASH; Nikki Udria, ORE; Anissa Urtez, UTAH.