2023 NFCA Division II Softball All-Americans
One of the most unprecedented seasons in Hillsdale College history has helped earn sophomore pitcher Joni Russell an unprecedented honor and one of the highest possible in collegiate softball.
The National Fastpitch Coaches Association announced on Wednesday night that Russell has received All-American honors from the organization for the 2023 season, earning a spot on the NFCA NCAA Division II All-American third team. Russell is just the fifth player in Hillsdale College softball history to earn All-American honors, and only the second pitcher, joining Hillsdale College Hall of Famer Renae Schaffner, who was named a NAIA All-American in 1989. The sophomore is the only pitcher in program history to be named a NCAA DII All-American, and one of three players to be recognized as an All-American by the NFCA, joining Katie Kish in 2018 and Sam Catron in 2021.
Russell was one of only five players from the Midwest Region to receive All-American honors from the NFCA, and the only player from the Great Midwest Athletic Conference to earn All-American status from the NFCA in 2023. The award is the latest in a string of several, including unanimous first-team All-Midwest Region recognition, the G-MAC's Pitcher of the Year award, and first team All-G-MAC honors for the second straight season.
It's elite company for Russell, and it's a group she belongs in after posting what is a strong contender for the best pitching campaign by a Hillsdale College player in program history in 2023. The sophomore helped lead Hillsdale to a G-MAC Tournament title and NCAA DII Tournament appearance with a 19-9 record and two saves in 32 appearances. Along the way, she shattered the program's previous record for single-season strikeouts with 268 to date, 52 more than the old record set by Danielle Stiene in 2015, and her 0.76 ERA is the second-lowest in program history.
Russell also had eight shutouts in 2023, one shy of the program record for a single season, and she also broke a program single-game record for strikeouts with 19 in a 4-0 victory over Malone on April 8. Russell's played a major role in the Chargers setting the G-MAC record for ERA as a team with a mark of 1.71, a number that ranks ninth nationally. Russell's ERA of 0.76 also ranks fourth in the nation at the NCAA DII level, and her 268 strikeouts rank fifth. Those numbers helped her earn not only All-Region recognition, but also helped her be named the 2023 G-MAC Pitcher of the Year, a first for Hillsdale, as well as her second-straight first team All-G-MAC honor.
In just two seasons as a Charger, Russell has put herself in position to challenge multiple career records at Hillsdale. Her 428 strikeouts are already second all-time, behind Sarah DeAngelo's total of 474, and her 12 career shutouts rank fourth. She's also tied for seventh in career wins with 33, and all without yet cracking the top 10 in innings pitched.
Russell has two more seasons to build on what's already one of the best careers in Hillsdale College softball history, and will return to the field with the Chargers in 2024, as a team that loses only one player to graduation from the 2023 roster looks to build off a 35-win campaign and cement a place as a perennial contender in the Midwest Region.