CAPITAL ONE ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA® TEAM S ELECTED BY C O SIDA FOR RELEASE: Thursday, May 26 – 10 a.m. (EDT) PITCHER ASHLEY BRIGNAC OF LOUISIANA, CATCHER KELSEY KITTLESON OF LUTHER HEADLINE CAPITAL ONE ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA® SOFTBALL TEAMS TOWSON, Md. – Senior pitcher Ashley Brignac of Louisiana and junior catcher Kelsey Kittleson of Luther College lead the 2011 Capital One Academic All-America® Softball Teams, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Brignac and Kittleson have been chosen as the winners of the Academic All-America® of the Year award in the University and College Divisions, respectively. A Kinesiology and Exercise Science major with a 4.00 G.P.A., Brignac is making her first appearance on the Capital One Academic All-America® University Division first team. She led the Ragin’ Cajuns to a 51-11 record and the NCAA Division I Austin Regional championship game in 2011 before they lost to the University of Houston, 4-1. Brignac led Louisiana to its 11th Sun Belt Conference Tournament Championship in the last 12 years. A Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I All-Region second team selection in 2008 and 2011, Brignac compiled a 32-7 record with 10 shutouts and a 1.50 E.R.A. this season. A native of River Ridge, La. has pitched seven no-hitters in her career, including four diamond gems in 2011. Brignac struck out 244 batters and walked 73 in 233.2 innings pitched as a senior. She did not commit an error in 55 fielding chances. After missing the entire 2010 season and part of 2009 with an injury, Brignac dominated the Sun Belt Conference this Spring with a 14-3 record and 1.08 E.R.A. She was named as the Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year in 2011 and 2008. In addition, Brignac, who has a year of eligibility remaining, was named the conference’s Pitcher of the Week seven times out of 13 possible weeks this year. A NFCA High School All-American, she was the staff ace on the USA Softball Junior Women’s National Team that won the 2006 Pan Am Championship and gold medal at the 2007 World Championships. A Biology major with a 4.00 G.P.A., Kittleson is also making her first appearance on the Capital One Academic All- America® College Division first team. She received the NCAA Elite 88 Award for the second straight year as the student- athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament in Salem, Va. A native of St. Ansgar, Iowa, Kittleson led Luther College to the NCAA Tournament, a number four national-ranking, and a 41-6 overall record including a 14-2 mark in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Starting in all 47 games, she batted .403 with three home runs and 41 RBI. An outstanding defensive catcher, she had a .998 fielding percentage with only one error in 410 fielding chances. She threw out 9 of 29 base runners attempting to steal and added seven pickoffs. Kittleson was named to the 2011 All-Iowa Conference first team and the NFCA All-Midwest Region second team. A Fellowship of Christian Athletes leader, Kittleson is a member of Luther Athletes Serving Others, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and serves as a Health Science Club officer. Graduate student Katie Duhe, an infielder from Southeastern Louisiana, and senior outfielder Kelsey Bruder of Florida are two members of the Capital One Academic All-America® University Division Softball first team who were named to the second team in 2010. Pitcher Stephanie Brombacher of Florida moved up to the first team after earning third team notice in both 2009 and 2010. Duhe is joined in the infield by sophomore Kayla Braud of Alabama, junior Chelsea Garcia of Oklahoma State and senior Mollye Mlcak of Houston Baptist. Sophomore Raven Chavanne of Tennessee and senior Kandis Jones of New Mexico State join Bruder in the outfield. Senior catcher Cristina Trapani of Southern Illinois and senior designated player Annie Dubovec of Robert Morris complete the Capital One Academic All-America® University Division Softball first team. -more- Ashley Brignac, Kelsey Kittleson Lead Academic All-America® Softball Teams – page 2 Bruder and Brombacher have led fourth-seeded Florida to a 50-10 record and a berth in the NCAA Division I Super Regionals against Oregon this weekend. The Gators eliminated defending national champion UCLA in the NCAA regionals. The Gators actually placed four scholar-athletes on the three Capital One Academic All-America® University Division softball teams. In addition to placing Bruder and Brombacher on the first team, the Gators were represented by senior infielder Meagan Bush on the second team and senior outfielder Michelle Moultrie on the third team. A Health Education and Behavior major with a 3.70 G.P.A., Bruder is one of six Gators who have started all 60 games this season. A native of Corona, Cal., she is hitting .380 with 17 home runs, 65 runs scored and 63 runs batted in. A 2009 Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-American, Bruder made her third appearance on the All-Southeast Region team this season. She has an impressive .754 slugging percentage and a .491 on-base mark. A finalist for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, Brombacher maintains a 3.55 G.P.A. while majoring in Health Education and Behavior. The Pembroke Pines, Fla., native enters the NCAA Super Regional with an 18-2 record, eight complete games, seven shutouts and a 1.08 E.R.A. She has struck out 116 batters with 31 walks in 132 innings pitched. A three-time All-Southeastern Conference selection, Brombacher has held opponents to a .171 batting average. A two- time member of the Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-America teams, she has compiled a 95-10 record in her career with 666 strikeouts in 657 innings of work. A native of Lutcher, La., Duhe earned her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting in December from Southeastern Louisiana with a perfect 4.00 G.P.A. The recipient of the President’s Medal for Academic Excellence, she began work toward her M.B.A. degree this spring. A two-time All-Southland Conference second team shortstop, she finished the year ranked among the league leaders with a .341 batting average while leading the Lady Lions to a 22-30 record. A .339 career hitter, Duhe finished her career with 186 base hits, second on the school's career list. One of 10 finalists for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, Braud is a Public Relations major with a 3.92 G.P.A. While earning All-Southeastern Conference and Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-South Region first team honors for the second year in a row, she has led second-seeded Alabama to a 49-8 record and a berth in the Super Regionals this weekend against Stanford. A sophomore from Eugene, Ore., she leads the Crimson Tide in six offensive categories, including batting average (.437), runs (68), hits (80), total bases (102), on-base percentage (.523) and stolen bases (55). She was the 2010 SEC Freshman of the Year and earned second team All-America honors after setting the Alabama school record with a .505 batting average in 2010. The starter at shortstop in 175 career games for Oklahoma State, Garcia is hitting .337 with 12 home runs, 53 runs batted in and 32 runs scored. A Mathematics/Teacher Education (Spanish) major with a perfect 4.00 G.P.A., Garcia has led Oklahoma State to a 40-17 record and the Knoxville Regional championship. A junior from Moore, Okla., Garcia and the Cowgirls face Houston in the Stillwater Super Regional this weekend. She was named to the 2011 Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-Midwest first team and has been named second team All-Big 12 Conference the last two years. She is also a two-time Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar first team selection. A senior shortstop from Galveston, Texas, Mlcak led Houston Baptist to the 2011 Great West Conference Tournament championship and a 36-23 record. A Psychology and Kinesiology major with a 3.92 G.P.A., she batted a team high .364 with a .561 slugging percentage for the Huskies with six home runs and 34 runs batted in. A two-time All- Great West Conference first team selection, Mlcak scored 40 runs and had 17 doubles. One of 10 finalists for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, Chavanne helped Tennessee post a 49-12 record and a berth in the NCAA Division I Tournament. A sophomore Political Science major with a 3.92 G.P.A., she led the Southeastern Conference in batting average (.455) and base hits (90). A first team All-SEC and Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-Southeast Region selection, the Thousand Oaks, Cal. native stole 33 bases in 36 attempts this season. She added 32 runs batted in with a .551 slugging percentage. As a freshman, she was named to the Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-America and All-Region teams. She was also named All-SEC as a freshman while leading the Lady Vols to the Women’s College World Series. A Community Health major with a 3.88 G.P.A., Jones is a two-time All-Western Athletic Conference centerfielder who earned first team honors in 2011. She led the New Mexico State to a 44-17 record, the WAC regular season and tournament championships and a berth in the NCAA Tucson Regional. A native of La Mirada, Cal., Jones batted .391 with 59 runs scored, 34 runs batted in and 11 doubles.