La Crosse, Wis. – The Viterbo University softball team had three players honored by the Midwest Collegiate Conference on Friday night. Freshman Maddy Podmolik (Deerfield, Wis.) and senior Melissa Weaver (Trempealeau, Wis.) were named to the MCC First Team All-Conference team while sophomore Ali VanHavermaet (Tomah, Wis.) received Honorable Mention All-Conference honors.

Podmolik had a fantastic first season in a V-Hawk uniform as she finished second on the team with a .322 batting average. The leadoff hitter for the V-Hawks, Podmolik led the team with seven homeruns and had a team high 11 stolen bases. Her seven homeruns was the ninth most in the MCC this season and is the third most by a V-Hawk in a single season. She also recorded eight doubles, 23 runs scored and 12 runs batted in (RBI's).

Weaver had a fantastic final season for the V-Hawks which saw her more than double her batting average from a year ago. Weaver led the V-Hawks and finished second in the MCC in batting average hitting .378 for the season. She also led the V-Hawks in hits (42), doubles (12) and RBI's (26). Her 12 doubles ranks third most in a single season while her batting average is the fifth highest in a season by a V-Hawk. She also finished with a .444 on base hitting percentage and a .649 slugging percentage. After hitting no homeruns last season, Weaver finished second on the team with six homeruns this season.

This is the second straight season that VanHavermaet has been honored by the MCC as she was a first team all-conference selection last season. VanHavermaet appeared in 28 games this season on the mound which is the third most in a single season for a V-Hawk. She finished 8-16 overall with a 3.58 earned run average and three shutouts. VanHavermaet finished with 113 strikeouts in 156.1 innings of work. Her 24 starts on the mound are second most in a single season as are her 113 strikeouts. She also ranked in the top five in the MCC in innings pitched (3rd), strikeouts (4th), games started (3rd) and complete games (3rd).

As a team, the V-Hawks finished the season 13-26 overall and 10-14 in the MCC. Although the V-Hawks will have a tough time filling the gap left by Weaver who graduates this May, she is the only player who will not be back next season. Head Coach Andrea Tsilis is excited with who she has coming back next season as well as whom she has coming in. So far, Coach Tsilis has announced a recruiting class of four players including the 2011 WIAA Division III player of the Year Kirsten Tomlinson from Poynette, Wis.