Posted: May 05, 2024
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.- On the heels of their eighth straight Conference Championship, a league high 10 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers were honored by the Citrus Conference on Friday as eight Bucs were named 1st Team All-Conference with Lea Chevrier honored as the Pitcher of the Year and Head Coach Robert Iamurri the Coach of the Year.
Lea Chevrier continued an incredible streak for the Bucs by being named the Citrus Conference Pitcher of the Year, the eighth straight season an FSW hurler has earned the honors. She was a perfect 23-0 during the regular season, ranking fifth in the country in victories. She started 26 games, posting a 1.63 ERA while striking out 131 in 133 innings pitched. She also notched three saves on the season, giving her nine in her career which is tied for the all-time FSW lead.
Joining Chevrier on the 1st Team was fellow righthander Esmee Ames. Ames pitched in a team high 32 games for the Bucs during the regular season, going 19-5 with a team best five saves. She posted a 1.55 ERA which led the conference while her 19 wins ranked third and her 128 strikeouts in 117 innings pitched were sixth most.
The Bucs had a pair of 1st Team All-Conference infielders including D'Yani McKinley who earns the honors for the second straight year and Maddy Golka. McKinley was second on the team with a .394 batting average during the regular season, stealing 35 bases in 38 chances while scoring 48 runs which was third most on the team. Golka hit .371 while tying for the team lead with 13 doubles and dirving in 26 runs on the year.
Sydney McCray earned her way onto the 1st Team for the second straight season, hitting .363 while stealing a team high 46 bases and scoring 69 runs which ranked third in the conference during the regular season.
Joining McCray on the 1st Team outfield was freshman Emily Allegood who did a little bit of everything for FSW during the regular season. Allegood led the Bucs with 60 hits and 21 extra base hits including a team high six triples while hitting .385 with 46 RBIs on the year. While she was honored as a hitter by the league, she also went 6-0 with a team best 1.49 ERA in the circle in 52 innings pitched for FSW.
Bucs backstop Siestke Drijvers was named a 1st Team All-Conference pick behind the plate a season after she was a 2nd Team selection as a freshman. Drijvers hit .338 with a team best 50 RBIs during the regular season while also sneakily stealing 16 bases in 17 chances.
The Bucs eighth and final 1st Team pick was freshman Virginia Mambelli who led FSW with a .415 batting average during the regular season while tying for the team lead with 13 doubles and driving in 48 runs in just 106 at bats.
The Bucs had a pair of players named 2nd Team All-Conference in the outfield as sophomore Ella Moore and freshman Skylar Brennan both picked up a 2nd Team nod. Moore hit .342 with 33 runs driven in while Brennan hit .356 with 10 doubles and 47 RBIs on the year.
Leading the bunch was Head Coach Robert Iamurri who was named the Citrus Conference Coach of the Year, the seventh time in eight seasons he has earned Coach of the Year honors from the conference.
After winning the Citrus Conference regular season title the Bucs have drawn the #2 seed for the upcoming FCSAA State Tournament where they will open play Wednesday at 4 PM in Clearwater when they take on Eastern Florida in the first round.