Guile Named to Player of the Year Watch List

Junior Ashley Guile was among 50 players named to the USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year preseason watch list, announced on Wednesday by the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America.

Guile is the first Husker hitter named to the preseason watch list since Nicole Trimboli in 2004. Overall, Nebraska has now had a player selected to the watch list in three of the past four seasons (also pitcher Robin Mackin in 2010 and pitcher Molly Hill in 2008). Guile was one of seven players from the Big 12 Conference selected to the 2011 watch list.

A list of 10 finalists for the award will be released on May 11, with the list narrowed down to the final three on May 25. The winner of the 2011 USA Softball national College Player of the Year Award will be announced prior to the start of the Women’s College World Series.

As a sophomore in 2010, Guile batted .382 with 15 doubles, four home runs and 42 RBIs. She also drew 35 walks and was hit by 11 pitches to post a .520 on-base percentage to complement a .554 slugging percentage. Guile’s 15 doubles were the most ever by a Husker sophomore and ranked fourth all-time, while her .382 average ranked third among all sophomores in NU history and eighth all-time. Her 11 hit-by-pitches tied teammate Julie Brechtel for the school record, while her 35 walks marked the sixth-highest total in school history.

For her efforts, Guile was a first-team All-Big 12 selection in 2010 and a second-team All-Midwest region selection. Guile started 39 of her 59 games at catcher last season, becoming the first Husker catcher to garner first-team all-conference accolades since Jenny Smith in 1997.

Guile and the rest of her Husker teammates open the 2011 season next week at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz. Nebraska opens the season on Thursday, Feb. 10 at 5 p.m. (Central) against Portland State.

2011 USA Softball Player of the Year Watch List
Name (School) ? Year ? Position ? Hometown
Valerie Arioto (California) ? Senior ? Utility ? Pleasanton, Calif.
Hillary Bach (Arizona State) ? Junior ? Pitcher ? Tulsa, Okla.
Donna Bourgeois (Houston) ? Senior ? Pitcher ? Lafayette, La.
Katelyn Boyd (Arizona State) ? Junior ? Infield ? Phoenix, Ariz.
Kayla Braud (Alabama) ? Sophomore ? Infield ? Eugene, Ore.
Stephanie Brombacher (Florida) ? Senior  ? Pitcher ? Pembroke Pines, Fla.
Anna Cahn (Cal Poly) ? Senior ? Pitcher/Designated Player ? Los Alamitos, Calif.
Raven Chavanne (Tennessee) ? Sophomore ? Outfield ? Thousand Oaks, Calif.
GiOnna DiSalvatore (UCLA) ? Senior ? Infield ? Palm Harbor, Fla.
Kelsi Dunne (Alabama) ? Senior ? Pitcher ? Port Orange, Fla.
Rachel Fico (LSU) ? Sophomore ? Pitcher ? Oxford, Conn.
Kenzie Fowler (Arizona) ? Sophomore ? Pitcher ? Tucson, Ariz.
Olivia Galati (Hofstra) ? Sophomore ? Pitcher ? West Babylon, NY
Alisa Goler (Georgia) ? Senior ? Infield ? Frankfort, Ill.
Melissa Gonzalez (Hawaii) ? Senior ? Infield ? Moreno Valley, Calif.
Kelly Grieve (Tennessee) ? Senior  ?Outfield ?Asheville, N.C.
Ashley Guile (Nebraska) ? Junior ? Utility ? Olathe, Kan.
Meredith Hackett (Illinois) ? Junior ? Infield ? Corona, Calif.
Sarah Hamilton (Florida State) ? Senior ? Pitcher ? Tallahassee, Fla.
Ashley Hansen (Stanford) ? Junior ? Infield ? Chandler, Ariz.
Andrea Harrison (UCLA) ? Junior ? Outfield ? Garden Grove, Calif.
Alicia Herron (Ohio State) ? Junior ? Shortstop ? Cypress, Calif.
Alex Holmes (UC Davis) ? Senior -  Pitcher/DP ? San Juan Capistrano, Calif.
Whitney Kiihnl (Lipscomb) ? Junior ? Pitcher/Outfield ? Batesville, Miss.
Brittany Lastrapes (Arizona) ? Senior ? Outfield - Laguna Niguel, Calif.
Blaire Luna (Texas ) ? Sophomore ? Pitcher ? Austin, Texas
Kelly Majam (Hawaii) ? Sophomore ? Outfield  - Pine Valley, Calif.
Jenna Marston (Missouri) ? Sophomore ? Infield  - St. Louis, Mo.
Meagan May (Texas A&M) ? Sophomore ? Catcher/1B ? Spring, Texas
Morgan Melloh (Indiana) ? Senior - Pitcher ? Fishers, Ind.
Jen Mineau (Fordham) ? Junior ? Pitcher - Schaghticoke, N.Y.
Abby Olson (Illinois State) ?Senior- Infield ? Hartsburg, Ill. 
Toni Paisley (East Carolina) ? Senior ? Pitcher/Utility ? Lakewood, Calif. 
Samantha Pappas (Oregon) ? Sophomore ? Outfield ? Las Flores, Calif.
Sara Plourde (Massachusetts) ? Junior ? Pitcher ? Bristol, Conn.
Jessica Purcell-Fitu (BYU) ? Senior ? Catcher ? Walnut, Calif.
Jamia Reid (California) ? Junior - Outfield ? Buena Park, Calif.
Ivy Renfroe (Tennessee)  - Sophomore ? Pitcher ? Jackson, Tenn.
Keilani Ricketts (Oklahoma) ? Sophomore -  Pitcher ? San Jose, Calif.
Hope Rush (Georgia Tech) ? Sophomore ? Pitcher ? Stockbridge, Ga.
Jenn Salling (Washington) ? Senior ? Infield ? Port Coquitlam, B.C., Canada
Taylor Schlopy (Georgia) ? Senior ? Outfield ? West Hills, Calif.
Brittany Schutte (Florida) ? Sophomore ? Utility ? Fountain Valley, Calif.
April Setterlund (Boston) ? Senior ? Outfield ?Torrance, Calif.
Dorian Shaw (Michigan) ? Senior ? Infield ? Burke, Va.
Kristen Shifflett (Radford) ? Senior ? Shortstop ? Charlottesville, Va.
Jessica Shults (Oklahoma) ? Sophomore ? Catcher ? Valencia, Calif.
Jordan Taylor (Michigan) ? Senior ? Pitcher ? Valencia, Calif.
Rhea Taylor (Missouri) ? Senior ? Outfield ? Buford, Ga.
Niki Williams (Washington) ? Junior ? Outfield ? Mission Viejo, Calif.