Dennis, Young Selected to 1999 VaSID Team
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June 7, 1999
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – University of Virginia softball playersKristen Dennis (Encinitas, Calif./La Costa) and Meaghan Young (Shrewsbury,Mass./Shrewsbury) were two of 12 players selected by the Virginia CollegeSports Information Directors to the 1999 VaSID Division I UniversitySoftball Team. Hampton, Liberty, Virginia and Virginia Tech made up thefield of schools from which the 12 players were selected.
Dennis, a first-year at Virginia, spent time this season as a firstbaseman, pitcher and designated hitter for the Cavaliers. She entered the’99 season with Virginia carrying high expectations from her excellent highschool career. She did not disappoint anyone with her performances thisseason, as she stepped right into the Cavalier lineup and finished the yearas one of UVa’s top players. Aside from being named to the All-ACC Team,Dennis was tabbed as the 1999 ACC Rookie of the Year. She becomes thefirst Cavalier ever to earn the honor as a softball player.
Dennis started all 59 games she appeared in this season forVirginia. She was selected to the 1999 Atlantic Coast ConferenceAll-Tournament Team and was chosen to the UNC Triangular ClassicAll-Tournament Team this season. Dennis was named the ACC Pitcher of theWeek on April 27 and was tabbed the ACC Player of the Week on Feb. 23. 15of her 59 starts were as a pitcher, were she posted a record of 9-6 (.600).She demonstrated she is one of UVa’s most versatile players as she excelledat first base, pitcher and at the plate in her first season of collegiateplay.
Dennis batted .347 with 176 appearances at bat. She recordedteam-highs with 247 putouts, 27 RBI, 16 doubles and two homeruns. Dennisfinished third on the team with 61 hits (including one triple) and 27 runsscored. She was successful on seven of her nine stolen base attempts.Dennis appeared in 18 games as a pitcher, were she posted a 1.64 ERA. Shefaced 482 batters through 111 innings of work and was second on the teamwith 92 strikeouts and four shutouts. Dennis finished third on the teamwith ten complete games pitched and tallied a .986 fielding percentage.She also gathered one save as a pitcher.
Dennis ranks first in the ACC in double per game with a 0.27average, fourth in the conference with a .347 batting average, fourth inthe ACC with a 1.64 ERA, fourth in the conference with a 5.80 strikeoutsper game, fifth in the ACC in pitching victories percentage with a mark of9-6 (.600) and is fifth in the conference with one save this season.
Young, a second-year right fielder at Virginia, started all 61games she appeared in for UVa in right field. She is one of the Cavalierstop players and has flourished in her role as UVa’s lead off hitter andstarting right fielder the past two seasons. Young was selected to the1999 ACC All-Tournament Team and was named the ACC Player of the Week onMay 4. She was also selected to the UVa ‘Hoos Who All-Tournament Team .
This season, Young batted .321 with 209 appearances at the plate.She recorded a team-high 67 hits, including eight doubles, two triples andone homerun. Young finished second on the team with 28 runs scored and wasfourth on the squad with 21 RBI. She was successful on 11-17 stolen baseattempts (.647) and tallied 49 putouts to go along with .935 fieldingpercentage. Young has already collected 133 career hits in just twoseasons, putting her on pace to shatter the current all-time hit total of186.
Virginia Tech’s Kara Krumhardt was named the NCAA Division IUniversity Virginia State Softball Player-of-the-Year, and Virginia Tech’sScot Thomas was named the State’s Coach-of-the-Year.
1999 VaSID State University I Division Softball Team
Name School Year PositionClarisa Crowell Virginia Tech Fr. PitcherAshlee Dobbe Virginia Tech Fr. PitcherLeslie Inge Liberty Jr. PitcherErika Cotton Hampton Jr. CatcherKristen Dennis Virginia Fr. First BasemanMichelle Meadows Virginia Tech Jr. Second BasemanCharisse Thompson Hampton Fr. Short StopKara Krumhardt Virginia Tech Jr. Third BaseBrandi Cobb Hampton So. OutfielderLibi Cook Liberty Sr. OutfielderMeaghan Young Virginia So. OutfielderAmy Csider Liberty So. Designated Player