DAYTON – The University of Dayton softball team had a record-breaking season in 2024 after winning the program's first Atlantic 10 Championship title and advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The Flyers posted a 33-21 overall record, the program's second-consecutive and fifth overall 30-win season, and claimed the A-10 regular-season title with their first-place conference record of 19-7.
UD put together a nine-game winning streak late in the year and won 12 of its last 14 games to close out the season. In the 2024 A-10 Championship, the Flyers only needed three games to claim the title, defeating Massachusetts (13-3 (5 inn.)), Loyola Chicago (2-0) and Saint Louis (3-0) on the way to the crown.
Dayton earned an automatic berth into the 2024 NCAA Tournament after claiming the league championship. The team headed to the Knoxville Regional and squared off against No. 3/3 Tennessee in the program's first national postseason contest. The Lady Vols clipped the Flyers, 3-0, in both team's first game of the weekend. The following day, Dayton was matched up against No. 24/23 Miami (Ohio) in an elimination game, falling to the RedHawks by a 4-0 margin to close out the historic season.
With 12 pitching shutouts, the Flyers equaled the program record and set new high marks on offense with 102 stolen bases and 186 walks. After drawing a career-high 31 bases on balls, junior
Maddie Kapsimalis set a new program single-season walks record and graduate student
Emily Daniel leaves the program as the Flyers' career stolen bases leader with 85.
4.0 FLYERS AWARD
Kirnan Bailey
Sarah Bailitz
Maddie Kapsimalis
Izzy Kemp
Emma Schutter
ATLANTIC 10 YEAR-END AWARDS
Defensive Player of the Year:
Emma Schutter
Coach of the Year: Cara Clark
First Team:
Maddie Kapsimalis,
Kirnan Bailey,
Haven Dwyer
Second Team:
Molly Grace,
Chloe Wong,
Emma Schutter,
Izzy Kemp
All-Rookie:
Kirnan Bailey
All-Academic:
Sarah Bailitz,
Maddie Kapsimalis,
Emma Schutter
A-10 ALL-CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM
Sarah Bailitz
Izzy Kemp
Emma Schutter
Chloe Wong – Most Outstanding Player
NFCA MID-ATLANTIC REGION
Third Team:
Maddie Kapsimalis
PLAYER-VOTED YEAR-END AWARDS
Most Valuable Player:
Haven Dwyer
Co-Offensive Player of the Year:
Maddie Kapsimalis &
Chloe Wong
Defensive Player of the Year:
Emma Schutter
Most Improved Player:
Sarah Bailitz
Rookie of the Year:
Kirnan Bailey
NATIONAL STATISTICAL RANKINGS
Team
Stolen Bases – 15th (102)
Stolen Bases/Game – 15th (1.89)
ERA – 28th (2.47)
Shutouts – 33rd (12)
Walks – 37th (186)
Individual
Stolen Bases –
Emily Daniel, 10th (33)
Stolen Bases/Game –
Emily Daniel, 10th (0.63)
Hits Allowed/Seven Innings –
Izzy Kemp, 13th (4.32)
Strikeouts/Seven Innings –
Izzy Kemp, 24th (8.3)
Stolen Bases –
Emma Schutter, 28th (26)
Sacrifice Bunts/Game –
Kirnan Bailey, 37th (0.20)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio –
Izzy Kemp, 39th (4.19)
ERA –
Izzy Kemp, 40th (1.79)
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