LANCASTER, Pa. – Sophomore pitcher Kaitlyn Willis of the Ursinus College softball team was named to the All-Centennial Conference second team after a spectacular season at the head of the Bears' staff.
Willis finished 10-8 and led the conference with a 1.96 ERA over 18 impressive starts for Ursinus, which went 17-19 overall and 7-9 in league play. The right-hander was nearly unhittable down the stretch, tossing a complete-game shutout in each of her final three starts to run her season-ending scoreless innings streak to 27. Willis' ERA in CC games was a microscopic 1.31.
After allowing 16 earned runs in her first four starts, Willis surrendered more than two earned runs only twice in her last 14. Over her final eight starts, Willis compiled a 0.93 ERA, conceding just 30 hits and striking out 35 batters in 45.1 innings.
Willis is the first Ursinus pitcher to lead the conference in ERA since Lauren Davis-Macedonia in 2010. At the conclusion of the regular season, she ranked tied for third in wins (10) and fifth in strikeouts (79). Her four shutouts are the most in the conference, and her 14 complete games stand second; Willis held CC opponents to a .199 batting average.
Willis' ERA and strikeout totals are the best by a Bear since Jennilyn Weber, who posted a 1.91 ERA with 116 strikeouts in 2012, also the last year that an Ursinus pitcher made the all-conference roster. Willis' dominance was a big reason why Ursinus finished with its highest overall win total since 2012, and its most CC wins since 2013.
A two-time CC Pitcher of the Week, Willis shut out Swarthmore in both ends of the Bears' season-ending doubleheader, throwing a three-hitter in the opener and a two-hitter in the nightcap to help Ursinus blank its opponent in a CC twin bill for the first time in six years.
In addition to Willis, senior Meredith Watters was named to the All-Sportsmanship Team.