SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio - Notre Dame’s Anna Ball earned a program first when she was selected to the NAIA All-America First Team for the 2008 softball season.
In being so honored, the Falcons' record-setting junior third baseman becomes the first player in program history to be named as a First Team All-American and just the second First Team selection in the history of Notre Dame Athletics. The selections were made by NAIA Softball Officers and comprises a First Team, Second Team and Honorable Mention Team.
The All-America award caps off what was one of the most prolific individual seasons in NDC sports history. The lefty-slugging Ball finished the 2008 season with program-record totals in hits (74), doubles (26), home runs (12), and batting average (.532) among nine single-season batting records broken.
Ball, already Notre Dame's career leader in most batting categories, ranked second in the nation this year with her .532 average (74-for-139). She also ranked in the Top 5 in the nation in slugging percentage (1.007), doubles per game, and hits per game.
The Bellville, Ohio, native was a Second Team All-American as a sophomore a year ago.
2008 NAIA SOFTBALL ALL-AMERICA TEAM