Taylor Edwards Named NFCA All-American

Taylor Edwards capped an impressive freshman season on Wednesday when she was named a third-team All-American by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA). Edwards is the first Husker catcher to earn All-America honors, and is the Nebraska softball program's 21st All-American.

Edwards was the nation's lone freshman position player to earn All-America honors, joining five freshman pitchers named to one of the three All-America teams. Edwards also joined three-time All-Americans Ali Viola and Jennifer Lizama as the only Husker freshmen to earn All-America honors. Viola was a second-team selection in 1995, while Lizama took home second-team honors in 1997. Overall, Edwards is Nebraska's first All-American since Anne Steffan was a third-team selection in 2005.

Edwards was one of 10 players from the Big 12 Conference to earn All-America accolades, and she was honored to be included among the elite group of players.

"This award is truly an honor, and I'm very thankful for it," Edwards said. "My goal this season was to help change the mindset and bring in some fun. All of the girls and coaches were amazing, and even though we finished sooner than we would have liked, I'm still proud of the team. I know we are already working harder for this next season.

"I want to thank my teammates, coaches and most of all my family. I couldn't do it without my family being there for me every step of the way."

A native of Murrieta, Calif., Edwards produced outstanding numbers in her rookie season. In 55 starts, Edwards batted .356 with 18 home runs and 67 RBIs. She ranked second in Husker history in home runs, third in RBIs, fifth in slugging percentage (.738) and walks (37) and seventh in total bases (118) and fielding percentage (.993). Among all freshmen in school history, Edwards produced the most home runs and walks, while producing the second-most RBIs and third-highest batting average. Edwards' 67 RBIs were also a Big 12 freshman record.

Edwards' freshman season also stood out nationally. She homered in six straight games in the month of February, establishing an NCAA record for most consecutive games with a home run. Currently, Edwards ranks eighth nationally in RBIs per game and 11th in home runs, while also ranking among the top 40 hitters nationally in home runs per game (14th), walks (40th) and slugging percentage (40th).

Edwards was one of 25 finalists for the USA Softball Player-of-the-Year Award, and the only freshman to be a finalist. She earned second-team All-Big 12 honors and was named the Big 12 Player of the week on Feb. 22. Edwards produced an RBI in 35 of Nebraska's 55 games, including 24 games with at least two RBIs. She was at her best in clutch situations, batting .524 with 10 home runs and 57 RBIs in 63 at bats with runners in scoring position, including a .652 average and 25 RBIs in 23 at bats with runners in scoring position and two outs.

Behind her impressive individual statistics, Nebraska made its third straight NCAA Tournament appearance, climbed into the national rankings for the first time since 2007 and advanced to a regional final for the first time since 2006.

Head Coach Rhonda Revelle said Edwards earned such a high honor, despite only being a freshman.

"Taylor is very deserving of this honor," Revelle said. "She is a great athlete, teammate and person. She came into our program and made an impact immediately. You can see from her statistics that she is deserving of this honor, but what you cannot see from the statistics is that Taylor is an All-America teammate as well."