Softball signs class of four
November 16, 2009 | Softball
Nov. 16, 2009
MADISON, Wis. -- The Wisconsin softball team signed four players to its 2011 recruiting class, head coach Chandelle Schulte has announced. Stephanie Peace, Mary Massei, Cassandra Darrah and Michelle Mueller will join the Badgers in the fall of 2010. All four boast impressive accolades earned during their high school careers.
New Braunfels, Texas, native Stephanie Peace, soon to be a graduate of Canyon High School, is a three-time academic all-district, first team all-district and all-county athlete. She was a part of the Canyon’s 2009 Texas Class 4-A state championship team, also earning Texas Girls Coaches Association and Texas Sportswriters Association All-State honors.
In her junior year, she batted .430 with 57 hits, 15 doubles, 3 triples, 6 home runs and stole 17 bases in 18 attempts. She has 151 hits in her three-year high school career with a career batting average of .438. Peace is also a two-year National Honor Society member and a two-time State Regional Powerlifting qualifier.
“Steph has really come on strong in the last year,” Schulte said. “Her athleticism is tremendous. She’s very coachable. I think she’s going to come in and really make a difference for us.”
Mary Massei (pronounced muh-SAY), an outfielder from Ruben Ayala High School in Chino Hills, Calif., started her career as the 2007 Top Rookie of the Year and her accolades continued into her sophomore year. Massei was named All-Sierra League first team and All-Tournament in the Nike “Fastest to First” tournament. She was team captain for the 2009 season and earned All-Sierra League first team, All-Inland Valley first team and all-state second team honors. Massei is also a three-time All-Sierra League Scholar Athlete.
“Mary Massei is probably one the quickest kids that we’ve ever brought in,” Schulte remarked. “She plays for one of the best travel teams in the country, the Firecrackers. She’s had great coaching and we’re really excited to have her.”
Cassandra Darrah (Darr) is a four-year academic letterwinner from Wayne High School in Corydon, Iowa, and is currently ranked fourth in her class. She is a two-year academic all-conference athlete, a two-year first team all-conference pitcher, two-year all-district, two-time all-state honorable mention and MVP of her team. Thus far in her career, Darrah has tallied 1,278 strikeouts, including 378 in her junior year alone, and has a career earned run average of 0.34. A multi-sport athlete, she has been named MVP and is a two-year captain of her volleyball team, as well as a two-year first team all-conference hitter.
“She has made tremendous progress in her pitching,” Schulte said. “We feel like this is a steal for us. She is from Iowa and we enjoy keeping Midwest kids in the Midwest. We look for her to have a great impact on the mound as a freshman.”
La Crosse, Wis., native Michelle Mueller (MEW-ler) is a two-time first team all-conference softball player. In her junior season, she earned conference and Division I State Player of the Year awards, with her team winning the conference that year. As a sophomore, she earned an all-state honorable mention honors. Mueller has a career batting average of .500 with 43 hits, 11 doubles, 5 triples, 11 home runs and 44 RBIs. She holds her school record for single-season runs, hits, doubles, home runs, and RBIs.
Mueller is also a three-year first team all-conference volleyball player and a two-year first team all-conference basketball player. She is also a member of the National Honor Society.
“Michelle Mueller is Wisconsin born and bred,” Schulte commented. “She is an athlete that has so much potential in her and we think, with coaching on a daily basis, she is going to be a valuable asset to the team.”
Wisconsin softball opens its 2010 season on Feb. 11, when it takes on Texas Tech at the ASU Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz.
