USA Softball has named junior OF Emily Crane (Troy, Mo.) and sophomore RHP Tori Finucane (Germantown, Md.) on its pre-season collegiate player of the year top-50 watch list.
Crane ranked 10th in the SEC with a batting average of .389 a year ago, including 10 doubles and four home runs while driving in 37 runs and stealing 17 bases (in 19 attempts) in 49 games. Finucane won SEC Freshman of the Year honors in 2014 after posting a sterling 21-6 record with a 1.73 earned run average in 29 starts.
Mizzou is ranked 17th in the preseason polls, and starts the season Feb. 13th at the Dot Richardson Invitational in Clermont, Fla. with games that day against Louisville and Chattanooga. The home opener for MU is set for April 11th with a double-header against Southeast Missouri State (4 p.m. start time).
The Top 25 Finalists for the 2015 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award will be announced April 8. While an athlete does not have to be on the “Watch List” to be considered for the Top 25, the eventual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will come from the Top 25 Finalists. The Top 10 Finalists will be announced May 6 and the Top 3 announced May 20. The 2015 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be revealed May 26.