National Champs Have Four Named NJCAA All-American
On the heels of their 2021 NJCAA National Championship, four Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers have been named to the NJCAA All-American teams.
CHARLOTTE, N.C.- On the heels of their 2021 NJCAA National Championship, four Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers have been named to the NJCAA All-American teams.
Staff ace Alyssa O'Donnell was the Bucs lone representative on the 1st Team All-American squad. She posted a 23-1 record in 26 starts, notching a 1.67 ERA in 138 2/3 innings pitched. Her .958 winning percentage this season was second best in the NJCAA Division I ranks while her 1.67 ERA also ranked second among pitchers with more than 20 wins on the year. O'Donnell started 9 of the Bucs' 10 postseason games, including all five games at the NJCAA National Tournament, in route to their first National Championship in program history. She finished the postseason an unblemished 5-0 with a 1.76 ERA while squaring off against six teams ranked in the top 15 of the National Rankings. O'Donnell's selection marks the fifth straight season a Buccaneer pitcher has been honored with All-American accolades, following in the footsteps of Courtney Gettins (2016 & 2017), Giovanna Watts (2018), and Kelsi Collins (2019). She will play next season at Long Island University.
For the second straight season, Rebeca Laudino earned All-American honors, this season picking up 2nd Team accolades. Laudino led the team with 79 hits and 33 stolen bases on the year while hitting .485 and reaching base at a cool .517 clip. She had hits in 40 of the Bucs final 43 games of the season including five multi-hit games during the 2021 postseason. She finishes her FSW career as the all-time hits and runs leader with 218 and 182 respectively while hitting .512 in her time in Fort Myers, also a program best. Laudino is just the second Buc in program history to be named an NJCAA All-American twice, joining Courtney Gettins who was an All-American pick in 2016 and 2017. She will play next season at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.
Joining Laudino on the 2nd Team was fellow speedster Janessa Plummer. Plummer had a breakout campaign for the Bucs in 2021, finishing fourth in the NJCAA with an eye-popping .543 batting average. Opponents couldn't keep Plummer off the sacks this season as she hit in 38 of 48 games including all 10 games of the postseason. She had 21 multi-hit games on the season including three at the NJCAA National Tournament, hitting an even .600 and scoring seven runs in the Bucs' Championship march to earn Tournament Most Valuable Player honors. She will play next season at Liberty University.
The Bucs fourth All-American selection was slugging third baseman Feline Poot who was named a 3rd Team pick. Poot was the Suncoast Conference Player of the Year this season, hitting .399 with a team best 17 home runs and 58 RBIs on the season. Poot had 18 multi-hit games on the year and had 15 games with two or more RBIs. She had five multi-hit games during the 2021 postseason and recorded extra base hits in six of the Bucs' 10 postseason contests. Her 17 home runs in 2021 ties a single season program record while she ends the year second in program history with 23 career dingers.
The Bucs four All-American selections ties a program record, first established in 2019. Their four picks this season were tied for second most in the country to Butler's five.
Other FCSAA All-Americans included Odalys Cordova and Gianna Guerriero of Central Florida who were 1st Team picks, Lauren Lightbody of Eastern Florida who was a 3rd Team selection and Jaden Williamson of Indian River who was also a 3rd Team pick.