By Ed Cassiere
Associate Athletics Director for Strategic Communications, Xavier University
(written for the Louisiana Sports Writers Association)
        Double-winners Summer Ellyson and Ciara Bryan of Louisiana-Lafayette lead the way on the 2021 All-Louisiana collegiate softball team.
        Ellyson repeated as Pitcher of the Year — she also won in 2019 — and Bryan, a transfer from the University of Georgia, is Hitter of the Year and Newcomer of the Year.
        LSU captured the other two major awards. Shortstop Taylor Pleasants is Freshman of the Year, and Beth Torina is Coach of the Year. It's the first time since 2015 that LSU won multiple major awards.
        A Louisiana Sports Writers Association panel of sports media and college softball publicists selected the All-Louisiana team, based on statistics and performances through the teams' conference tournaments. Those statistics were used in this story. There was no All-Louisiana team in 2020 because the COVID-19 pandemic shortened that season.
        Ellyson — from Lafayette, La., and a three-time All-Louisiana first-team selection — was 23-6 with a 2.22 ERA, nine shutouts and 173 strikeouts in 167 innings. Including NCAA Tournament games, Ellyson was 25-7 and finished No. 3 on the Ragin' Cajuns' career victories list with 99. Ellyson is the fifth person and the third from UL Lafayette to win Pitcher of the Year multiple times.
        Bryan, from Covington, Ga., hit .426 with five home runs, 37 RBI and 35 stolen bases in 38 attempts. She slugged .601 and had an on-base percentage of .469. She reached base safely in each of her first 39 games. Bryan is the second to win two All-Louisiana major awards in the same season; Lexie Elkins (hitter, newcomer) of UL Lafayette did it in 2014.
        Pleasants, from Houston, hit .314 with 11 home runs and 47 RBI. She slugged .591 and helped LSU reach an NCAA Tournament super regional for the sixth consecutive time. Pleasants is LSU's sixth Freshman of the Year and its first since 2014.
        Torina reached 400 career LSU victories during the season, her 10th with the Tigers. LSU racked up nine regular-season wins against ranked opponents, two apiece against UL Lafayette, Texas, Tennessee and Missouri. LSU was 32-19 entering NCAA regionals and finished 35-22 after a pair of one-run losses to Florida State — the eventual national runner-up to Oklahoma — in the Baton Rouge Super Regional.
        Torina is a two-time state Coach of the Year. She also won in 2015.
        UL Lafayette and LSU have four All-Louisiana first-team players apiece. The Cajuns are atop that category for the 12th time in 13 seasons. Joining Ellyson and Bryan are Justice Milz at first base and Jade Gortarez at second base. LSU's first-team honorees are Pleasants, pitcher Ali Kilponen, Amanda Doyle at third base and Aliyah Andrews in the outfield.
        The remainder of the first team consists of pitcher Whitney Tate and designated player Kaylee of McNeese, catcher Olivia Hennen of LSU-Eunice, outfielder Aeriyl Mass of Southeastern Louisiana and utility player Uchenna Jong Loy of Bossier Parish Community College.
        Leading the second team is UL Lafayette with five selections: pitcher Kandra Lamb, Kaitlyn Alderink at third base, Alissa Dalton at shortstop, Kendall Talley in the outfield and Julie Rawls at utility.
        Also on the second team are Bossier Parish's Primrose Aholelei at pitcher, Samantha Eckert at catcher and Haylee Ladner at first base; LSU's Shelbi Sunseri at pitcher and Ciara Briggs in the outfield; Northwestern State's Cayla Jones at second base and E.C. Delafield at designated player; and Southeastern Louisiana's Audrey Greely in the outfield.
        Ten student-athletes received honorable mention. This is the 35th season of All-Louisiana softball selections.