The Emory University softball team has placed a total of five players on the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s (NFCA) All-Atlantic Region Team. 

Emory placed four players on the first team, the most of any region team.  Landing first-team slots were juniors Jessica Thomas (Springfield, Va.) and Bridget Holloway (Sparta, IL) along with freshmen Megan Light (Atlanta, Ga.) and Lena Brottman (Palatine, IL).  Junior Jessica Boni (Fuquay Varina, NC) was selected to the third team.

Thomas, a fixture in left field the past three years, concluded the 2011 campaign by hitting .367, placing her 13^th among University Athletic Association players.  She topped the squad and the conference with a school record 11 home runs and was second on the club and fourth in the league with 46 RBIs.  She produced 12 multi-hit contests and was second among Emory players with 14 outings of two or more RBIs.  She is tops all-time at Emory with 23 homers, eighth in career RBIs (123) and 13^th in base hits (150).  It represents the first time that Thomas has earned a first-team berth on the all-region team after being chosen to the second team in 2010 and the third team in 2009.

Holloway, despite missing a month of action with an injury, topped all UAA pitchers in victories, finishing the year with a record of 18-1 with her win total tying for the sixth-highest seasonal mark in school history.  She hurled 11 complete games in 17 starts and her ERA of 1.46 placed her third among conference performers.  In addition, she established a school season mark for fewest walks allowed per seven innings (0.60).  Career-wise, she has registered 43 wins in the circle, fourth on the school’s all-time chart.

Light made a huge impact in the team’s offensive attack during her rookie campaign, leading the club and the UAA with a hitting mark of .449, good for 11^th place on the Eagles’ seasonal ladder.  Named both the league’s Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year, Light paced the Eagles with 19 multi-hit affairs and posted two or more RBIs in 17 contests. Her team-leading 62 hits also ranked as the top mark in the UAA and tied her for seventh on the school’s seasonal list.  Her 16 doubles stood as the No. 1 mark on the team and was second among UAA players and her school seasonal-record total of 61 RBIs was the top mark in the league.

Brottman, along with Hollway, provided Emory with a formidable 1-2 pitching punch.  She ended the year with a 16-3 won-lost slate with her victory total tying for second in the league.  The owner of a 1.41 ERA, she completed 14 of her 21 starts and fanned a total of 103 batters, second highest in the league and 10^th on the school’s seasonal ladder. 

Boni was a workhorse behind the plate, drawing 39 starting assignments in her 42 appearances.  She hit a solid .402 and was second on the team with 49 hits and third with 33 RBIs.  She chalked up 11 multi-hit games and drove in two or more runs on seven occasions.

Emory ended the 2011 season with an overall record of 41-4-1.