Fort Lewis College’s all-time home run queen is now its first softball All-American.
Skyhawks’ third baseman Chelsea Rodriguez was named to the 2014 Daktronics All-America Softball Third Team on May 21.
She led FLC to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference championship game after hitting .401 for the season with 13 home runs and 46 runs batted in.
Her 42 career home runs are an FLC record, along with her 147 RBIs, 140 walks and 204 hits.
Rodriguez also was named to the Daktronics All-South Central Region First Team.
Renee Erwin of West Texas A&M was named the Ron Lenz Player of the Year, and Morgan Foley was named the Ron Lenz Pitcher of the Year.
Two other Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference players were named to the third team:
Jessica Belsterling of the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs was selected as the designated player.
Colorado Mesa’s Jessica Severinsen made the team as a utility-pitcher.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
Durango High School selects its new softball coach
Chelsea Rodriguez’s softball career at Fort Lewis College may be over, but her involvement with softball in Durango isn’t.
She was named Durango High School’s new softball coach, the FLC athletic department announced in a tweet Friday.
Rodriguez will replace Mike Cioppa, who stepped down after one year at the helm.
She’ll inherit a team that went 9-10 last season and hit a team-record 10 home runs.
DHS graduated four seniors from last year’s team but returns its top pitcher Lexi Vidunas and two of its top three home-run hitters in Katelyn DeLuche and Rebekah Ford.
Rodriguez will be the program’s eighth head coach since its inception in 2000.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com