Berry, Tupa Named All-Great Lakes Region
UW-Oshkosh senior third baseman Erika Berry and sophomore outfielder Acacia Tupa received NCAA Division III All-Great Lakes Region honors from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA).
Tupa was selected to the Second Team and Berry to the Third Team as the Titans placed at least two players on the all-region team for the sixth straight year. Berry received her third consecutive NFCA All-Region award while Tupa earned recognition in her first season at UW-Oshkosh.
Tupa, a transfer from NCAA Division I UW-Green Bay, hit .346 on the year while pacing the Titans with 30 runs, five triples, four home runs, 68 total bases and a .636 slugging percentage. She drew 14 walks while striking out just eight times in 107 at-bats across 39 games played, including 37 as a starter.
Tupa recorded at least one hit in 13 of UW-Oshkosh's final 14 games of the season, including a 4-for-4 performance against UW-Stout on April 30. She hit a home run and drove in four runs during a game against UW-Whitewater on May 5 at the WIAC Championship. Tupa also homered on back-to-back days against UW-Eau Claire on April 29 and UW-Stout on April 30.
Berry, who received All-Great Lakes Second Team honors in 2016 and 2017 at third base, garnered recognition as an at-large candidate this season. She batted .366 during the 2018 campaign in which she led the team with 41 hits and a .443 on-base percentage while starting all 40 games. She also tallied 22 runs, eight doubles, two home runs and 22 RBIs.
Berry, who closed her career ranked fifth in UW-Oshkosh history with 39 doubles, had a pair of two-base hits against Clarkson University (N.Y.) on March 18 as she compiled a string of eight multiple-hit performances during a stretch of 10 games in March of this season. Berry's career totals also include a .348 batting average, a .411 on-base percentage, a .508 slugging percentage, 172 hits, 103 runs, 10 home runs, 86 RBIs and 29 stolen bases in 166 games.
Berry and Tupa were both named to the All-WIAC First Team earlier this season.
Head coach Scott Beyer and the Titans received an at-large berth to the NCAA Division III Championship for the second year in a row, marking the program's first consecutive trips to the national tournament since 2007-08.
UW-Oshkosh (26-14), which won the La Crosse Regional title a year ago, went 1-2 at this season's St. Paul (Minn.) Regional. The Titans – who traveled to Arizona, Florida, Michigan and Minnesota, and completed their 14 conference games during a span of 11 days – finished second in both the WIAC standings and the league's postseason tournament. UW-Oshkosh, which led the Great Lakes Region in triples per game, concluded the year with a program-record 20 three-base hits while ranking fourth in school history with 75 doubles.
Each of the eight NFCA All-Region Teams were comprised of three 15-player teams. All-Region players were nominated and selected by NFCA member coaches from each of the regions.