Wise, VA – Senior Dani Benton was named Appalachian Athletic Conference softball Pitcher of the Year to highlight the 2006 UVa-Wise softball champion players.  Benton was joined by Krystal Showers and Shelley Newton as the other All-AAC honorees.
 
The trio led the Lady Cavs to the program’s first AAC tournament title after defeating Tennessee Wesleyan, 3-0, in the championship game.  UVa-Wise (34-14), the defending region champions, will now head into the NAIA Region XII tournament on Wednesday, May 10^th and Thursday, May 11^th in Owensboro, Kentucky. 
 
Benton has quietly compiled the AAC’s most wins (17) and lowest earned run average (1.19).  The senior from Chesapeake, Va. earns her second All-AAC honors in the past two years and first time as the Pitcher of the Year.  She stands at 17-5 on the year with 14 complete games and seven shutouts.  Over 146.2 innings on the mound, Benton holds a 1.19 ERA while allowing 25 earned runs.  She has posted 86 strike outs to just 35 walks and has held batters to a .185 average, second best in the AAC.  Benton has produced the fifth best average at the plate for the Lady Cavs of .276 (29 hits in 105 at bats).  She has scored 13 times, lined two doubles and drove in 10 runs.
 
Newton returns to the All-AAC team for the second time in her two seasons.  The catcher received All-Conference and All-Region acclaim as a freshman last season.  She is the Lady Cavs’ leader in average (.336), doubles (12), home runs (4), total bases (74) and slugging percentage (.517).  The Chesapeake, Va. native laced three singles and scored two of the team’s three runs in the AAC championship game.  Newton has 10 multi-hit games, four three-hit and one four-hit games this season while ranking in the league’s top 10 in six different offensive categories.
 
The sophomore has accumulated some impressive numbers in two seasons at UVa-Wise.  She has 101 hits in 313 at bats for a .323 average while posting 32 doubles, two triples, eight home runs and 71 runs batted in.
 
Showers makes her first appearance on the All-Conference team.  The shortstop has been the team’s clean-up hitter all year and anchor of the infield.  At the plate, the Chester, Va. product ranks eighth in the AAC in rbi with 31.  She leads the team with 12 walks and second with a .316 average and seven doubles.  Rounding out her numbers, Showers has 43 hits, 25 runs scored, one home run and a .404 slugging percentage.
 
In three years with the Lady Cavs, the senior shortstop holds a .313 batting average (131 hits in 418 at bats).  She has sliced 19 doubles, three triples and nine home runs while driving in 79 runs and scoring 72 times.