NM State two-way star Desirae Spearman was named to the 2024 TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year Top 25 List, announced Thursday afternoon by the NFCA. (Photo: Courtesy NMSU Athletics)
Source: Conference USA
A five-time CUSA Freshman of the Week, Spearman is tied for the CUSA lead and ranks 21st nationally with 15 home runs and owns an 8-2 record with a 2.90 ERA and a .233 opponent batting average in the circle.
In CUSA play, the El Paso, Texas, native leads the league in slugging (.904), OPS (1.404), RBI (19) and home runs (nine), while ranking second in runs (19) and third in walks (13) and on-base percentage (.500).
In a 3-2 win over rival UTEP on March 23, Spearman tossed a complete game, struck out a career-high 12 batters and hit a game-winning inside-the-park homerun in the fifth inning. She has recorded three multi-homer games, most recently in a 6-2 win over first-place Liberty in which she pitched another complete-game victory.
On May 9, the list will be trimmed to the top 10, and the three finalists will be released on May 23. The winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 28, prior to the start of the 2024 NCAA Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
The list of 25 was selected by the NFCA. The top 10, top three and winner are voted on by the NFCA Division I All-America Committee. To be eligible, student-athletes must be nominated by their member head coach and in their first year of NCAA Division I collegiate competition as a true freshman or redshirt freshman.
The TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year award was created in 2014 to honor outstanding athletic achievement among Division I freshmen softball student-athletes. In 2024, the NFCA will award Freshman of the Year plaudits to a student-athlete from NCAA DI, NCAA DII, NCAA DIII and NAIA. For more information about all NFCA Awards, visit nfca.org.
2024 TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year Top 25
Lorraine Alo, Portland State
Jaysoni Beachum, Florida State
Sam Buckley, Saint Mary’s
Michelle Chatfield, Virginia Tech
Rosie Davis, Oklahoma State
Jesse Farrell, UNLV
Karli Godwin, Oklahoma State
Maddia Groff, Southern Illinois
Jensin Hall, Dartmouth
Kayden Henry, Texas
Teagan Kavan, Texas
Sophia Knight, Boise State
Kennedy Miller, Arkansas
Bridget Nemeth, Penn State
McKenzie Oslanzi, Eastern Illinois
Ella Parker, Oklahoma
Kasidi Pickering, Oklahoma
Keagan Rothrock, Florida
Maddi Rutan, Eastern Kentucky
Regan Shockey, Arizona
Brooklyn Shroyer, Fairleigh Dickinson
Desirae Spearman, New Mexico State
Sophie Sun, Harvard
Isa Torres, Florida State
Sonia Zhang, Princeton
TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year Winners
2023 – NiJaree Canady, Stanford; 2022 – Jordy Bahl, Oklahoma; 2021 – Tiare Jennings, Oklahoma; 2019 – Danielle Williams, Northwestern; 2018 – Jocelyn Alo, Oklahoma; 2017 – Rachel Garcia, UCLA; 2016 – Amanda Lorenz, Florida; 2015 – Paige Parker, Oklahoma; 2014 – Annie Aldrete, Tennessee & Kasey Cooper, Auburn
