Despite falling in the conference opener to eventual tournament champion UNC, the loss to the No. 14 ranked Heels was not without a silver lining, as the ACC named sophomore second baseman Alyssa Ishibashi to its ACC 2009 All-Tournament Team.
Ishibashi received All-Tournament recognition despite only playing in one game in the series. The honor came on the heels of a 2-4 day at the plate in the opening round loss to the Tar Heels. Ishibashi accounted for half the team’s total base hits on a day when the Pack offense was largely stifled by two time ACC player of the year Danielle Spaulding. Her pair of singles against the nation’s leader in strikeouts capped an impressive offensive season for Ishibashi, who led the Pack in several significant offensive categories, including batting average, runs scored, and hits.
Ishibashi’s efforts against Carolina, in which she provided a tremendous share of the team’s offensive production, should come as no surprise, as Ishibashi proved herself to be one of the Pack’s premier contact hitters throughout the season. Her batting average of .282 was 12 points higher than the teammate with the next highest batting average and her on base percentage of .395 was 42 points higher than junior catcher Claudia Cooper, who finished second on the team with .353. And while she led the team in multiple categories, her place in the top five in virtually every other offensive statistic displayed her offensive versatility.
Ishibashi will lead a deep and experienced group of young players into the 2010 campaign, as the only two players from this season’s team that will not return next season will be pitcher Mendy Mckenzie and first baseman Mackenzie Mangum. Ishibashi will combine with sophomore third baseman Bridget Desbois, the team’s RBI leader, and sophomore catcher Alyssa Albritten, who led the team in total bases. Ishibashi will join those two and several more key contributors from this season to give the Pack a positive outlook and tremendous opportunity to improve on a 2009 campaign that did not fulfill the high expectations and hopes the team had after a season-opening victory over then No. 7 Oklahoma.
