2016-17 local college athlete rundown: Female edition
A look at every Yuma County kid who played a women’s sport collegiately this past school year
With the 2016-17 school year officially in the books, it’s time to take a look back at what Yuma County high school products were able to accomplish at the collegiate level.
Below is a list of every former Yuma County high school athlete who played a women’s sport collegiately this past school year, and a look at how each one fared. A list of male athletes was published Thursday.
Bethany Olea (CHS ’13)
See above story
Kennedy Garcia (GR ’14)
Olea wasn’t the only local softball player whose team made the Division I NCAA Tournament, as Garcia’s DePaul squad — which won the Big East Tournament — also did. Garcia, a Phoenix College transfer in her first season with the Blue Demons, split pitching duties for the team, finishing with an 11-9 record and a 3.14 ERA in 30 appearances (20 starts). She did not pitch in either NCAA Tournament game for DePaul, which went 0-2.
Alexis Evans (CHS ’13)
Evans enjoyed the most postseason success of any local softball player, as her Angelo State team reached the Division II National Championship Series, where it lost in two games to Minnesota State University-Mankato. Evans, who hit a 3-run home run during one of the Rams’ Super Regional victories, batted .233 with 42 RBIs and 10 home runs in her second season as an every-game starter for Angelo State, which she joined following two seasons at South Mountain Community College.
Aylin Gutierrez (GR ’14)
Gutierrez, a transfer from Arizona Western, earned a starting role in her first season with the Bobcats and hit .316 with 12 RBIs in 26 games before suffering a season-ending injury in early April. That prevented her from being a part of West Virginia Wesleyan’s run to the Division II World Series, where the Bobcats reached the semifinals.
Ashley Van Why (GR ’14)
Played briefly in 13 games, collecting one hit in five total at-bats
Molly Rosenthal (GR ’14)
Scottsdale transfer appeared in nine games
Started all 32 of Lady Barons’ games, ranking second on the team in batting average (.336) and RBIs (17) and first in runs scored (24) and stolen bases (18)
Sarai Camacho (KHS ’14)
Junior was the team’s No. 1 pitcher for the second year in a row; went 9-10 with a 2.82 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 29 appearances (21 starts)
Linda Ontiveros (YHS ’13)
Offensively, Ontiveros hit .221 with 14 RBIs as a regular starter; defensively, the senior was named to the North Star Athletic Association Gold Glove Team for her work at third base