LOUISVILLE, Ky. – What a way to put an exclamation point on a great four-year career for Ladies Softball.
Recent Centenary graduate and Shreveport native Anna Dunn ended her career by becoming Ladies Softball's first All-American when she was named to the Third Team in a release by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Wednesday night, May 23.
The All-American honor for Dunn, believed to be the first from the NFCA in Ladies Softball history, comes on the heels of her First Team All-Region accolade last week.
"This award is truly an honor to me and to Centenary," said Dunn. "Not only did God give me the most amazing teammates in the world that supported me through both the hard and happy times, but also the coaching staff who pushed me to be eligible for this award. It gives future players the opportunity and faith that anything is possible. Never in my life could you have told me I would be considered for the All-Regional Team, much less the All-American Team. This only proves that hard work, heart, and putting the team first can get you so much further than you can imagine."
In a spectacular career that also included three All-Conference nods and the 2015 SCAC Newcomer of the Year award, Dunn saved the best for her senior season. She led the SCAC with a .424 batting average, a .915 slugging percentage, 52 RBIs, 15 home runs, and 108 total bases, breaking the Ladies single season record (non-scholarship era) in all five categories. She also broke both the conference and Centenary season home run record in the 2018 Conference Tournament.
Dunn also swiped 11 bags on the season, becoming the first player in SCAC softball history to tally double-digit home runs and stolen bases for a season.
"Anna has been a huge part of the Centenary softball program the last four years. Her success on the field this season was evident to all who watched us play," explained head coach Mark Suire. "But what people did not see were the countless hours spent in the batting cages by herself and the relentless pursuit to be the best player she could be when nobody was watching. They did not see the way she accepted tough coaching and consistently asked for more ways to improve. Those unseen moments outside of game days were what made Anna successful. But those moments were only possible because of who she is – a tireless, selfless worker who is quick to accept responsibility in defeat and who is also quick to credit others in victory."
For her play from April 9-15, Dunn received Player of the Week honors from both the SCAC and NFCA for the first time in her career. In seven games, she went 16-26 with 20 RBIs and five home runs. On senior weekend, April 14-15, she went 11-for-14 with seven runs scored, three doubles, and three home runs in the Ladies' four-game sweep of Dallas. Her two home runs in the second game on Saturday was the first time a Ladies hitter has hit two round trippers in one game in five seasons.
Dunn completed her career with a .371 batting average, the best in school history during the NCAA Division III era (minimum 200 at-bats). She also easily broke the career records in slugging percentage (.654), runs (112), hits (169), home runs (27), RBIs (126), total bases (179), and doubles (44) during the non-scholarship era.
