May 21, 1997

Crimi Named to GTE District III Team

Charlottesville, Va. - Virginia catcher Beth Crimi (Middle Island, N.Y.) today was named to the 1997 GTE Academic District III Softball Team (University Division) by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Crimi, who appeared in 33 of the Cavaliers 34 games behind the plate, helped guide an all-freshman pitching staff to an impressive 1.62 ERA as Virginia notched a second place finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference's regular season (17-16 overall, 6-2 ACC).

Crimi led her team in average (.323), hits (30), doubles (10), extra-base hits (12), and slugging percentage (.495) as Virginia notched its ninth winning campaign in the last 10 seasons. Defense was a point of emphasis for Crimi in 1997 and she responded by throwing out 10 of 36 would-be-basestealers.

A math / physics major, Crimi entered the 1997 season with a 3.45 GPA. She is the third Cavalier in as many years to be cited by GTE. Last year, Jamie Hahn picked up her second GTE award in two seasons, while Jody Smith was a GTE All-American in 1995.

District III includes schools within the states of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. The names of the nine athletes will appear on the GTE Academic All-American national ballot. The National Academic All-American Softball team will be announced on Thursday, June 5, 1997.

1997 GTE Academic District III Team 

Pitcher
Tina Echerer    Campbell    Sr. Smithtown, NY           3.60    Athletic Training

Catcher
Beth Crimi      Virginia    Jr. Middle Island, NY       3.45    Math / Physics

Infielders
Laura Williams  Georgia Tech    Sr. Stone Mountain, GA  3.20    Civil Engineering
Julie Glasser   Furman  Sr. Smyrna, GA                  3.68    Health / Exercise Science
Danelle Toole   Georgia Southern    Jr. Sylvania, GA    3.81    Health Promotions
Sonja Keith     Liberty So. Interlaken, NY              3.72    Government

Outfielders
Chanda Lee      South Carolina  Sr. Fayetteville, GA    3.41    Elementary Education
Cari Williams   Furman  So. Goose Creek, SC             3.35    Political Science / English

Designated Hitter 
Evangelina Vasquez  Bethune-Cookman So. Miami, FL       3.21    Criminal Justice