In just its fourth season as an intercollegiate program, Emory University finished third in the NCAA Division III national championship tournament.  The Eagles advanced to the national finals by winning the NCAA regional title for the first time. Emory finished with a school-record 43 wins (against 10 losses) and placed third in the final national rankings compiled by the softball coaches' association.

The Eagles won the University Athletic Association championship for the second consecutive year. Emory was a perfect 8-0 in the annual conference tournament in Florida. It also swept the major conference awards, winning Most Valuable Player (Nicole Kovski), Rookie of the Year (Allison Bouknight), and Coaching Staff of the Year (Penny Siqueiros and Jessica Seamon).  Six Emory players were voted to the all-conference team, all on the first team.

Pitchers Nicole Kovski and Christine O'Brien were among the national leaders in the last NCAA regular-season statistical report (final post-season report expected in July). Kovski ranked 15th nationally for most victories among Division III pitchers, prior to the NCAA national finals.  O'Brien was 26th nationally in earned run average, prior to the national finals.

Below are individual honors from this season:

All-Region (National Fastpitch Coaches Association)

Second Team                                     Christine O'Brien              Feasterville, PA (Villa Joseph Marie)

Second Team                                     Allison Bouknight             Duluth GA (Duluth)

Second Team                                     Melissa Roberts                Billings, MT. (Billings West)

Third Team                                         Lauren Dix                           Stockbridge, GA (Heritage)

Third Team                                         Elizabeth Hampson         Warren, NJ (Pingry School)

Third Team                                         Nicole Kovski                     Wilmette, IL (New Trier)

All-Conference (University Athletic Association)

Most Valuable Player                     Nicole Kovski                     Wilmette, IL (New Trier)

Rookie of Year                                   Allison Bouknight             Duluth GA (Duluth)

First Team                                           Nicole Kovski                     Wilmette, IL (New Trier)

First Team                                           Allison Bouknight             Duluth GA (Duluth)

First Team                                           Lauren Dix                           Stockbridge, GA (Heritage)

First Team                                           Elizabeth Hampson         Warren, NJ (Pingry School)

First Team                                           Sherri Rauenzahn            Baltimore, MD (Parkville)

First Team                                           Melissa Roberts                Billings, MT (Billings West)

All-Tournament (NCAA Nationals)

(only one team)                                Mary Nicol                          Barrington, IL (Barrington) 

All-Tournament (NCAA Regionals)

(only one team)                                Allison Bouknight             Duluth GA (Duluth)

(only one team)                                Lindsey Fay                         McLean, VA (Bishop O'Connell)

(only one team)                                Tamara Boggs                    Marietta, GA (Alan C. Pope)

(only one team)                                Melissa Roberts                Billings, MT (Billings West)

(only one team)                                Nicole Kovski                     Wilmette, IL (New Trier)

(only one team)                                Katie Donovan                  Littleton, CO (Chatfield)

(only one team)                                Lauren Dix                           Stockbridge, GA (Heritage)

Tamara Boggs
Boggs was second on the team and sixth among all players with a .389 (7-for-18) batting average in the NCAA regional tournament. An All-America selection in 2001, Boggs missed 23 games this season with a leg injury. She topped the .400 plateau in batting average for the third time in as many seasons, finishing at .402. She batted .481 with runners in scoring position, tops on the team, and .457 with runners on base, second on the team. The outfielder had a 15-game hitting streak that ended midway through the NCAA regional tournament. 

Allison Bouknight
Bouknight, the starting catcher, became the fourth Eagle ever to hit .400 or better in a season, finishing with a team-high .407 average. She was tops on the team with 16 multi-hit games. The freshman also led Emory with 11 stolen bases (in 13 attempts). She landed in the Emory top all-time 10 for best season numbers in hits (5th), on-base percentage (7th), slugging percentage (8th), and total bases (8th). In the NCAA regional tournament, Bouknight hit a team-high .412 (7-for-17) in five games and led all participants in hits and total bases.

Lauren Dix
This is the third time Dix has been selected to the all-region team.  The third baseman and leadoff hitter missed 10 games in April with a hand injury, but still led the team in fielding assists and was second in runs scored.  Emory had an .837 winning percentage with Dix in the starting lineup and .700 percentage without her. After three seasons, she is the school's career leader in hits and runs scored.

Katie Donovan
Donovan batted .250 (3-for-12) during the NCAA regional tournament. She cleanly handled both of her fielding chances in right field.

Lindsey Fay
Fay batted .300 (3-for-10) during the NCAA regional tournament. She handled 26 of 27 fielding chances at second base.

Elizabeth Hampson
Hampson was fourth on the team with a .374 batting average, second in hits, first in doubles, first in home runs, first in RBIs and third in slugging percentage. She tied for the team lead with 11 multi-RBI games. The first baseman had a team-high 19-game hitting streak (March 9-April 6). In the annual conference tournament in Florida, Hampson led the team with a .538 batting average. In the eight-game tournament, she was 14-for-26 with 10 RBIs and 19 total bases. She was honored as the conference Athlete of the Week for the week ending March 17. Hampson led the team in fielding putouts with 353. 

Nicole Kovski
Kovski ranked 15th nationally for most victories among Division III pitchers, prior to the NCAA national finals. She set school season records for most wins (20), complete games (19) and shutouts (7). The sophomore had a 20-5 record with a 1.55 earned run average. In 189 and one-third innings, she yielded 175 hits, walked 47 and struck out 112. In the post-season, Kovski compiled a 5-1 record with a 0.90 ERA, including two shutouts.  In the NCAA regionals, Kovski pitched 13 innings in one game, allowing one run, as Emory prevailed 2-1. In the annual conference championship in Florida, Kovski was 4-0 with one save and a 1.30 ERA in the eight-game tournament. She also helped her cause at the plate by hitting .700 (7-for-10). For the season, Kovski batted .312.

Mary Nicol
Nicol became the first Eagle ever to finish the season with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage (minimum 50 chances). She cleanly handled all 93 chances, primarily as a right fielder. She was fourth on the team with 12 multi-hit games and ended with a .345 batting average. Nicol was 5-for-5 in the first two games of the NCAA national finals and finished with a .500 average for the tournament. In the regular season, she had a 4-for-4 performance with three runs scored and five runs batted in against Agnes Scott (Ga.).

Christine O'Brien
The freshman pitcher was 26th nationally in earned run average in the NCAA statistics prior to the national finals. O'Brien finished with a 1.05 earned run average, a school record.  She allowed one or less earned runs in 15 of 19 starts. She compiled a 16-3 record with two saves.  In 119 and two-third innings, O'Brien yielded 98 hits, walked 46 and struck out 95. She was named conference Athlete of the Week for her performance in the Roanoke (Va.) Tournament.  In the five-game tournament, O'Brien picked up three wins, two of them by complete-game shutouts, and one save.  The save came in dramatic fashion against the No. 10 ranked team in the country as she entered the game in the bottom of the last inning with a one-run lead and the bases loaded before striking out two to end the game. O'Brien had a season-high nine strikeouts against Rochester (N.Y.) and Maryville (Tenn.).

Sherri Rauenzahn
During the annual conference tournament in Florida, Rauenzahn got her second start of season. She went 2-for-4 with one run scored and two runs batted in against Brandeis (Mass.). She stayed in the starting lineup the rest of the tournament and ended up with a .474 batting average (9-for-19) for seven games. In the last game of the tournament, also against Brandeis, Rauenzahn was 2-for-3 with 5 RBIs.  The designated hitter had a 3-for-3 performance with 2 RBIs in a non-conference game against Agnes Scott (Ga.).

Melissa Roberts
This is the third time Roberts has been named to the all-region and all-conference teams. She also was an all-region second-team selection in 2000 and 2001. The outfielder is the school's career leader in doubles, home runs, RBIs and total bases. This season, Roberts was third on the team with a .380 batting average, first with a .460 average with runners on base, and second with a .440 average with runners in scoring position. She tied for the team lead with 11 multi-RBI games. Roberts was honored as the conference Athlete of the Week in consecutive weeks (February 26 and March 5).