Koepsel Leads Titans' Four All-Region Softball Selections

First-team selection Katie Koepsel led four UW-Oshkosh players named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association's (NFCA) NCAA Division III All-Great Lakes Region Softball Team.

Koepsel becomes the fourth four-time all-region player in UW-Oshkosh history, joining designated player and first baseman Beth Rueter (1989-92) and pitchers Nila Gruenewald (1982-85) and Ronessa Stampfli (2005-08).

Koepsel was named to the All-Great Lakes First Team for the second straight season after garnering second-team accolades in 2012 and 2013.

Named to the NFCA All-Region Third Team were junior infielders Haley Bayreuther and Hayden Krueger and sophomore pitcher Sara Brunlieb. Bayreuther was a second-team selection last season while Krueger was a first-team honoree in 2014 and a second-team pick in 2013. It was the first all-region award for Brunlieb.

Koepsel paced the Titans in batting average (.433), hits (55), home runs (12), total bases (103), on-base percentage (.503) and slugging percentage (.811). She was second on the team with 33 runs, 10 doubles and 40 runs batted in. Her school record-tying home run total and slugging percentage led the WIAC while her total bases were second best in the league. Koepsel lists third in the conference in hits, runs batted in, and on-base percentage. Her 12 home runs also rank fourth in the Great Lakes Region and 11th in the NCAA Division III.

Koepsel, who set a school record with a 19-game hitting streak this season, concluded her career as the program's all-time leader with 34 home runs. She tied the school mark with 12 home runs this season after hitting nine as a freshman in 2012, six during her sophomore campaign and seven last year. Koepsel's record-setting career also includes tying the WIAC mark with 20 doubles in 2014.

Koepsel played in 151 games during her career, including 143 as a starter. She hit .387 while compiling percentages of .727 in slugging and .458 in on-base. Koepsel scored 102 runs and had 170 hits, 41 doubles, 128 RBIs and 319 total bases.

Brunlieb, the 2015 WIAC Pitcher of the Year, had a 21-4 record and a 2.03 earned run average in 30 appearances, including 23 as a starter. She recorded 106 strikeouts and four shutouts across 159 innings pitched. Brunlieb's 21 victories led the Great Lakes Region and ranks eighth in the NCAA Division III. The sophomore became UW-Oshkosh's first 21-game winner since Gruenewald won a school-record 25 games in 1985.

Brunlieb, who won 19 of 20 decisions from March 26 through May 2, pitched the 11th no-hitter in school history against Thomas College (Maine) on March 27. She also pitched a one-hitter against Finlandia University (Mich.) on April 10 and a two-hitter against Ripon College on April 25.

Brunlieb upped her career record to 32-8 with this year's performance. Her 49 appearances, including 41 as a starter, feature 147 strikeouts and five shutouts in 260 innings pitched.

Bayreuther paced UW-Oshkosh with 38 runs, two triples, 23 walks, seven hit-by-pitches and 17 stolen bases from atop the Titan batting order. The shortstop's .460 on-base percentage was second on the team, and she finished third on the squad with a career-high seven home runs, 71 total bases and a .597 slugging percentage.

Bayreuther career totals include a .307 batting average with 102 runs, 98 hits, six triples, 10 homers, 45 RBIs and a program-record 39 stolen bases in 112 starts.

Krueger led the team and ranked second in the conference with 41 runs batted in. The second baseman also ended the season second on the squad with a .354 batting average, 33 runs, 45 hits, nine home runs, 82 total bases and a .464 slugging percentage in 42 starts.

Krueger's career totals include a .388 batting average, 99 runs, 137 hits, 24 doubles, 22 home runs, 94 RBIs and .727 slugging and .458 on-base percentages in 112 games, all starts.

Illinois Wesleyan University, North Central College (Ill.) and UW-Whitewater each had two players named to the 15-member NFCA All-Great Lakes First Team. Aurora University (Ill.) had six players named to one of the three all-region teams, the most in the Great Lakes Region.

UW-Oshkosh (30-12), which placed at least four players on the All-Great Lakes Region teams for the third consecutive season, won 30 games for the fourth time in program history and hit a school-record 41 home runs.

2015 NFCA NCAA Division III All-Great Lakes Region Softball Team