Worcester, MA --- WPI softball designated player/catcher Jennifer Richards (Hampstead, NH) has been named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District I first team by the College Sports Information Directors of America (Co-SIDA). 

Richards, who now advances to the national ballot, is the only designated player selected to the first team in the College Division, which is comprised of NCAA Division II and III and NAIA programs in New England, New York and Eastern Canada. 

Richards sports a 3.89 GPA while majoring in biomedical engineering and is a three-time All-NEWMAC Academic team member. Her IQP Project focused on "Preserving traditional boats of Venice" while her MQP focused on the development of a minimally invasive procedure to correct coxofemoral luxation in dogs, a common hip dislocation ailment. Her sufficiency studied the use of prosthetics in the Civil War.  Richards will continue her studies next fall when she begins the pursuit of a doctorate at Cornell University.

This season, Richards was second in the NEWMAC and 40th nationally in home runs per game.  She split time between DP (19 games) and catcher (18) and led the team in home runs (8), doubles (4) and slugging percentage (.571). Richards started 37 of WPI's games in '09, batting .291 and ranking second on the team in runs (20) and RBI (23). The Engineers, under the leadership of second-year head coach George Legacy, finished the season 16-23, a four-win improvement from a year ago.

Senior outfielder Nicole Maglione (Charlton, MA) was also selected to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District I first team, the first time that WPI has had two players named to the first team in the same season.

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District I Winners

College Division

FIRST TEAM

Catcher                  Ariana Mullin   TRINITY COLLEGE   Woodbridge, Conn.       3.69    Neuroscience
Infield                    Becky Bailey    RPI       Holland Patent, N.Y.    3.93    Chemical Engineering
Infield                    Danielle Lopez  TUFTS UNIVERSITY     Danvers, Mass.  3.51    Bio-psychology
Infield                    Kristi Bradley   ST. JOHN FISHER   Dansville, N.Y. 3.84    Comm./Journalism
Infield                    Brittany DeGennaro      WNEC    Orange, Conn.   3.84    English
Outfield                  Jackie Tyler    AMHERST COLLEGE   Ridgewood, N.J. 3.70    Sociology
Outfield                  Bridget Farago  EMERSON COLLEGE   Oneonta, N.Y.   3.37   Literature/Publishing
Outfield                  Brittany Lillie    ITHACA COLLEGE    Honeoye Falls, N.Y.     3.66    Clinical Health
Outfield                  Nicole Maglione   WPI  Charlton, Mass  3.85    Civil Engineering
Pitcher                   Alex Chang-Graham       AMHERST COLLEGE  San Carlos, Calif.      3.88    Chemistry
Pitcher                   Ginni Sack      UNION COLLEGE (NY)   Burnt Hills, N.Y.       3.50    Neuroscience
Designated Player   Jen Richards    WPI  Hampstead, N.H. 3.89    Biomedical Engineering