LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Fifty student-athletes from across the country have been selected to the “Watch List” for the 2020 Schutt Sports / NFCA Division II National Player and Pitcher of the Year award.

Headlining the list are 27 returning NFCA All-Americans, seven from the first team, along with 10 from the second and third teams, respectively. 

In all, the group consists of 25 seniors, 14 juniors and 11 sophomores, representing 38 programs from 19 different conferences. Freshmen are not eligible for the “Watch List”, but can be considered for the Player and Pitcher of the Year awards once they have competed at the collegiate level. 

Ten programs garnered multiple candidates with University of West Florida and Winona State earning three nods, while Augustana, Cameron University, Chico State, Concordia University Irvine, Grand Valley State University, Tarleton State University and Texas A&M University Kingsville had two selections apiece.

The Lone Star Conference led the way with eight honorees. The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference followed with five selections. The California Collegiate Athletic Association, Great Lakes Valley Conference, Gulf South Conference and South Athletic Conference capturing four plaudits. 

The Top 25 finalists for the 2020 Schutt Sports / NFCA Division II National Player and Pitcher of the Year awards will be announced on April 23. A student-athlete does not have to be on the watch list to be considered for the Top 25. The top 10 finalists will be announced on May 12 and the winners will be recognized on May 28 following the conclusion of the 2020 season.

The previous honorees of the Player of the Year Award are Courtney Poole, North Georgia (2015), Lyndsay Butler, Wayne State University (2016), Coley Ries, Minnesota State (2017), Kylee Smith, North Georgia (2018) and Julia Seader, LIU Post (2019). The award was split into a player and pitcher award for the 2019 season with Grand Valley State’s Allison Lipovsky named Association’s first-ever Schutt Sports/NFCA DII Pitcher of the Year.

Behind the collaboration of the NFCA and its NCAA Division II Head Coaches Committee, along with the generosity of Schutt Sports, the award was created in 2015 to honor the outstanding athletic achievement among NCAA DII softball student-athletes.