| KINGSVILLE, Texas – The Texas A&M-Kingsville Softball All-Decade Team sponsored by Whataburger was announced on Wednesday, along with the selections for the program’s Hitter and Pitcher of the Decade. The Hitter of the Decade honor went to former Javelina catcher Roxy Chapa (McAllen, Texas), while the left-handed hurler Breanna Smith (San Antonio, Texas) was the choice for Pitcher of the Decade.Smith and Chapa were joined by 11 other former and current TAMUK student-athletes on the all-decade roster. Pitchers Saidi Castillo (Kingsville, Texas) and Lindsey Brown (Spring, Texas) made up the pitching staff along with Smith. The Javelina infield consists of Ali Bodnar (Las Vegas, Nev.), Victoria Schoonard-Saborio (Elk Grove, Calif.), Rose Stubbs (Garland, Texas) and Rachael Longoria (Hutto, Texas). Centerfielder Haley Boyett (Waco, Texas) is flanked in the outfield by Loren Kelly (Rockport, Texas) and Kaycee Bryan (Splendora, Texas) and Anastasia Leibas (Del Valle, Texas) occupies the designated player spot.Also included in the category of Honorable Mention were Amanda Arriaga (Kingsville, Texas), Jaeleen Castro (San Antonio, Texas) and Carlie Clark (Warsaw, Va.).Chapa’s career in Kingsville included a list of honors too numerous to mention in their entirety. She garnered All-Lone Star Conference recognition all four years she was at TAMUK and was named a Third-Team All-American by the Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association in 2016. Chapa set a program record for home runs in a season with 13 in 2018, then immediately broke that record one year later, when she whacked 14 dingers as a senior. By the time she graduated, Chapa had taken over the top spot in Javelina history for career home runs, RBIs, total bases and extra base hits.In the circle, Smith’s time in Blue and Gold included a banner 2019 season in which she reached First-Team All-LSC and second-team all-region status, won the LSC Tournament MVP award, tossed two no-hitters and set the program record for win percentage by going 22-4. Smith added these accomplishments to a career that’s also included a 2017 All-LSC selection and her 48 career wins and 383 career strikeouts were the most by any Javelina during the decade of the 2010s.Along with Smith, the Javelina pitching staff includes two more all-conference players in Brown and Castillo. Castillo joined Smith in 2019 to form one of the best pitching duos in the nation, also picking up First-Team All-LSC honors. She added to her list of accomplishments by earning the conference’s freshman of the year award and a spot on the National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-South Central Region First-Team. Castillo ran up a record of 27-5 during her first season as a Javelina, the second-highest single-season win total in school history, and her 226 strikeouts were the most in the LSC. The Kingsville native has already moved into the program’s top 10 in career victories, shutouts and strikeouts.Brown was an All-LSC Second-Team pick as a freshman in 2010 following a season in which she threw 170 innings, won 13 games and hit .336. Before her career was over, Brown had claimed spots in the program’s top 10 in wins, appearances and shutouts. She also excelled as a hitter during her time as a Javelina, putting together a .315 career batting average and her 15 homers were the 5th-most during the decade.Behind this trio of hurlers is a Javelina infield anchored by Ali Bodnar at first base. A member of TAMUK’s 2010 and 2011 squads, Bodnar owns the second-best career fielding percentage in program history at .984 and her .992 fielding percentage in 2011 represents the second-best single-season mark ever by a Javelina. The 2011 campaign was also her best as a hitter, as she crafted a .258 average across 132 at-bats.Victoria Schoonard-Saborio spent her four years in Javelina colors putting together one of the best careers the school has ever seen. Her accomplishments included three All-LSC selections, spots on the all-conference first-team in 2017 and 2019 and a D2CCA All-American Second-Team nod in 2017. Her .447 average as a sophomore and 58 runs scored as a senior both represent single-season bests for the Javelinas. Schoonard-Saborio’s 181 runs scored and .463 on-base percentage are career marks no Javelinas can top and she also sits in second in the program record book in homers, RBIs, extra base hits and total bases.Another Javelina who was a three-time All-LSC selection is Rose Stubbs, who was recognized by the conference in 2010, 2011 and 2013. During her time in Kingsville, Stubbs established herself as one of the best hitters to wear TAMUK colors, crafting a .362 career average, fifth-best all-time, and hitting .396 as a senior, the fourth-highest ever by a Javelina over one year. Her five hits in one game against Texas Woman’s University on April 22nd, 2011 are tied for the most in a game in school history. In 14 different statistics in the TAMUK record book, Stubbs can claim a spot in the top 10.One of the most well-rounded players of the decade for the Javs was third baseman Rachael Longoria. She was twice named to the All-LSC Golden Glove Team, landed three all-conference selections and was a four-time member of the LSC Commissioner’s Honor Roll. At the end of the decade, Longoria owned a place on the all-time top 10 list in a dozen different statistics, including RBIs (3rd), runs scored (5th), home runs (5th) and hits (6th). She concluded her career with .327 average and a .392 on-base percentage.It took Loren Kelly just two seasons to become TAMUK’s most prolific base-stealer of the decade. She swiped 71 bags between her freshman and sophomore years and broke the program’s single-season steal record by logging 42 in 2019. That season also saw Kelly score 57 runs, the second-highest single-season total ever by a Javelina, hit .353 and earn spots on both the All-LSC First-Team and LSC Golden Glove Team. The year before, she’d been a golden glove and LSC Second-Team pick, hit .337 and topped the squad with 37 runs scored and 30 steals.Haley Boyett spent four years patrolling center field in Kingsville and was twice named to the LSC Golden Glove Team, including in 2018, when she put up a spotless 1.000 fielding percentage. Only Kelly stole more bases during the 2010s then Boyett, who racked up 70, and the Waco native carved her name into the program record book in nine other categories, among them hits, walks, total bases and runs. Boyett’s best year came in 2017, when she hit a career-best .358, led the team in triples and stolen bases and was chosen to the All-LSC First-Team.The third speed demon in the Javelina outfield is Kaycee Bryan, who stole 52 bases for the Blue and Gold and owns TAMUK’s best success rate on thefts, a mark of .963. In 2010, Bryan was a perfect 13-for-13 on steal attempts, one of only three Javelinas to achieve that with more than 10 tries. She was also an All-LSC Honorable Mention choice in 2010. Along with her success on the basepaths, Bryan finished her career in the Javelinas’ top 10 in triples, doubles and runs scored.TAMUK’s leading hitter during their championship season of 2019, Anastasia Leibas earns the DP spot on the Javelina Softball All-Decade roster. Leibas hit .387 as a sophomore in 2019 and broke the single-season school records for RBIs, with 59, and total bases, with 129. She was also a member of the All-LSC First-Team and NFCA All-Region Second-Team. On the career leaderboard during the 2010s, Leibas needed only two seasons to put herself in the top five in batting average, homers, RBIs, on-base percentage and slugging.The Honorable Mention selections included utility player Jaeleen Castro, a four-year member of the squad who finished her career as a .275 hitter and is in the top 10 in career walks and hit-by-pitches. Pitcher Amanda Arriaga won 21 games over two years with TAMUK, including a 2010 season in which she went 8-3 with a 2.90 ERA over 87 innings. Her 38 career complete games are the sixth most in program history. The final Honorable Mention choice is right-hander Carlie Clark, who piled up 26 wins in Blue and Gold, the 10th most in the decade, also logged five career shutouts, which puts her fifth all-time.The selections for the all-decade team were made by members of the TAMUK athletic department with a special thanks to Sports Information Intern Ryan Smith. You can keep up with everything related to Javelina softball all year long by following @TAMUKSB on Twitter, @JavelinaSports on Twitter and Instagram, like Javelina Sports on Facebook and subscribe to the Javelina Athletics YouTube Channel. Watch your Javelinas live today on the Javelina Sports Network sponsored by Mendoza’s Pharmacy. |
