Softball Adds Wichita State Transfer Ashton Esparza to 2018 Class
6/15/2018 9:08:00 AM | Softball
Sophomore catcher signs with Ladyjacks as four-year university transfer after playing freshman campaign at Wichita State
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Head coach Nicole Dickson and the Stephen F. Austin softball program announced the signing of sophomore catcher Ashton Esparza to the Ladyjacks' 2018-19 squad Friday morning. Esparza, a four-year university transfer from the American Athletic Conference's Wichita State, is the 11th member of SFA's 2018 signing class.
A native of Allen, Texas, Esparza spent her freshman campaign playing for the Shockers in Wichita, Kansas, where she made two starts and saw action in eight games. Appearing primarily as a pinch hitter late in the spring, Esparza started at catcher in the season opener at 13th-ranked Auburn and made a start at the designated player position versus Northern Colorado. She scored a run and collected a hit on the season, while aiding Wichita State to a NCAA Regional appearance in May. Esparza was a member of the Shockers' regional final run in Fayetteville, Arkansas, as Wichita State claimed a pair of wins over Oklahoma State before bowing out to host and 13th-ranked Arkansas.
Prior to Wichita State, Esparza was a four-year letter winner at Allen High School where she played for head coach Philip Spaniel and was named first-team all-district. As an Eagle, Esparza led her team in RBI, home runs, walks and pickoffs, claiming MVP, catcher of the year and offensive MVP honors. She played club ball for the Vision Fastpitch Gold under head coaches Kim and Martin Poole.
"We're excited to add Esparza to the lineup," coach Dickson said. "She comes from a high-level program and we expect her to make an impact right away, both offensively and defensively. While Esparza is primarily a catcher, she can play both in the infield and the outfield. Behind the plate, Esparza's pop time should be one of the best in the Southland Conference."
Born in Plano, Texas, Ashton is the daughter of Henry and Jan Esparza and has one brother, Justin, and a sister, Lauren. She plans on majoring in marketing at SFA.
Esparza joins Kaelyn Roberts, Mackenzie Bennett, Cassidy Tucker, Alex Hedspeth, Kaitlyn Boudreaux, Darryan Welborn, Kassidy Wilbur, Ashley Kriesel, Tommi Goodman and Bailey Richards as Ladyjacks who will arrive in Nacogdoches to compete on the softball diamond this fall.
This spring the Ladyjacks posted the most victories in a single season in the last 10 years, reaching the 30-win plateau for just the sixth time in SFA's NCAA Division I history. Achieving one of the largest turnarounds in all of Division I softball, the Ladyjacks completed the season with a 31-24 overall record after finishing tied for second in the final Southland standings with a 18-9 league mark. SFA made just its second national postseason appearance by gaining the conference's automatic berth into the 2018 Postseason National Invitational Softball Championship (NISC).
Stay tuned to SFAJacks.com, as well as SFA's social media platforms, for complete coverage of Ladyjack softball throughout the offseason.
-SFA-
A native of Allen, Texas, Esparza spent her freshman campaign playing for the Shockers in Wichita, Kansas, where she made two starts and saw action in eight games. Appearing primarily as a pinch hitter late in the spring, Esparza started at catcher in the season opener at 13th-ranked Auburn and made a start at the designated player position versus Northern Colorado. She scored a run and collected a hit on the season, while aiding Wichita State to a NCAA Regional appearance in May. Esparza was a member of the Shockers' regional final run in Fayetteville, Arkansas, as Wichita State claimed a pair of wins over Oklahoma State before bowing out to host and 13th-ranked Arkansas.
Prior to Wichita State, Esparza was a four-year letter winner at Allen High School where she played for head coach Philip Spaniel and was named first-team all-district. As an Eagle, Esparza led her team in RBI, home runs, walks and pickoffs, claiming MVP, catcher of the year and offensive MVP honors. She played club ball for the Vision Fastpitch Gold under head coaches Kim and Martin Poole.
"We're excited to add Esparza to the lineup," coach Dickson said. "She comes from a high-level program and we expect her to make an impact right away, both offensively and defensively. While Esparza is primarily a catcher, she can play both in the infield and the outfield. Behind the plate, Esparza's pop time should be one of the best in the Southland Conference."
Born in Plano, Texas, Ashton is the daughter of Henry and Jan Esparza and has one brother, Justin, and a sister, Lauren. She plans on majoring in marketing at SFA.
Esparza joins Kaelyn Roberts, Mackenzie Bennett, Cassidy Tucker, Alex Hedspeth, Kaitlyn Boudreaux, Darryan Welborn, Kassidy Wilbur, Ashley Kriesel, Tommi Goodman and Bailey Richards as Ladyjacks who will arrive in Nacogdoches to compete on the softball diamond this fall.
This spring the Ladyjacks posted the most victories in a single season in the last 10 years, reaching the 30-win plateau for just the sixth time in SFA's NCAA Division I history. Achieving one of the largest turnarounds in all of Division I softball, the Ladyjacks completed the season with a 31-24 overall record after finishing tied for second in the final Southland standings with a 18-9 league mark. SFA made just its second national postseason appearance by gaining the conference's automatic berth into the 2018 Postseason National Invitational Softball Championship (NISC).
Stay tuned to SFAJacks.com, as well as SFA's social media platforms, for complete coverage of Ladyjack softball throughout the offseason.
-SFA-
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