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Somerset, NJ -- After clinching the 2016 Northeast Conference (NEC) softball regular season title and the top seed in the conference tournament, LIU Brooklyn was the big winner in the annual year-end awards as voted by the league’s head coaches. The Blackbirds claimed four of the six major postseason honors, highlighted by senior designated hitter Celinna Cosio’s (San Diego, CA/Bonita Vista) selection as the program’s sixth NEC Player of the Year recipient. Sophomore teammates Erynn Sobieski (Logan Township, NJ/GCIT) and catcher Victoria Zamora (Orange, CA/El Modena) also earned major awards for the Blackbirds as Sobieski was named NEC Pitcher of the Year and Zamora was honored with the NEC Golden Glove Award. Saint Francis U outfielder Hayley Norton (Spring Grove, PA/Spring Grove) was chosen as the NEC Rookie of the Year and Mount St. Mary junior Rachel Heinze (Charlotte Hall, MD/St. Mary’s Ryken) was tabbed the NEC Most Improved Player. After guiding LIU Brooklyn to a 14-2 conference record and taking a 14-game win streak into the postseason, Roy Kortmann and his assistants were voted the NEC Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
Cosio heads into the postseason leading the red-hot Blackbirds in slugging percentage (.593), RBIs (37) and home runs (8). The senior finished her final regular season with a .437 on-base percentage and .357 batting average, which places her second and third on LIU, respectively. Cosio ranks in the NEC top-10 in a host of categories, including hitting (third), RBIs (fifth), slugging (fifth), home runs (sixth) and on-base percentage (sixth). In NEC play, Cosio hit .500 with seven homers, 25 RBIs, a .554 on-base percentage and an astounding 1.109 slugging percentage, the highest figure by an NEC player in at least 13 years. She was also named to the All-NEC first team as a designated player and was selected NEC Player of the Week on May 2. LIU Brooklyn’s previous NEC Player of the Year award winners were Stephanie White (1997), Krystal Mejia (2004), Randi Gillespie (2006 and 2007) and Bianca Mejia (2010).
 
Sobieski is the latest in a long line of elite hurlers who have played under Kortmann at LIU Brooklyn. The sophomore was named the NEC Pitcher of the Week a league-best five times. She won an NEC-high 17 games over the course of the regular season and was a near-perfect 9-1 in conference play, including a pair of shutouts. Sobieski posted a league-leading 1.25 ERA against NEC opponents and 3.20 overall ERA when factoring in LIU’s typically challenging non-conference slate. Her 129 strikeouts ranks second in the conference and she issued just 27 free passes over 192.1 innings this spring. The 10th LIU player to be named NEC Pitcher of the Year, Sobieski joins former Blackbirds Crystal Eubanks (2000 and 2002), Jackie Brown (2003), Jessica Busick (2004), Jenny Giles (2004 and 2005) and Blaire Porter (2008-10).
 
The 2015 NEC Rookie of the Year, Zamora has proven to be an elite backstop during her two years in Brooklyn. She gunned down nearly 45 percent of would-be base stealers in the regular season, as only 21 players were successful in their steal attempts. Zamora had just three passed balls and committed only three errors in compiling a .987 fielding percentage. Madison Green also won the Golden Glove award for LIU Brooklyn in 2015.
 
Norton was a force at the plate in her freshman season as she became just the second Saint Francis U player to win the NEC Rookie of the Year award, joining current teammate Alexis Bower, who was honored in 2014. Norton earned a league-leading six NEC Rookie of the Week honors and was named NEC Player of the Week on April 4. One of just two freshman to earn first team All-NEC honors, Norton leads the league with 16 doubles and 122 total bases, and ranks in the NEC top-10 in no less than ten different categories. In helping lead the Red Flash to a school record-tying 33 wins, Norton hit .333 with 14 homers, 54 RBIs, a .449 on-base percentage and a .695 slugging percentage. She also hit .404 with seven homers, 21 RBIs and slugged .962 in league games.
 
Heinze had a historic junior season for the Mount as she broke the NEC single-season home run record with 19 round trippers on the year. She also set a new school mark with 26 career homers. The three-time NEC Player of the Week closed out the season with team-leading marks in batting average (.347), slugging percentage (.840), on-base percentage (.450), runs scored (44) and hits (50). Heinze, who was named to the All-NEC first team as a utility player, leads the NEC in slugging by a wide margin. In league play, she hit .452, and compiled a .952 slugging percentage and .589 on-base percentage.
 
LIU Brooklyn’s Roy Kortmann and his staff comprised of Bill Gehrke and Andy Russo earned the program’s second NEC Coaching Staff of the year honor. The most decorated coach in league history, Kortmann himself is also seven time NEC Coach of the Year. The Blackbirds earned their 11th NEC regular season title with a 14-2 conference mark and will be looking to win their 14th NEC Tournament crown this weekend. LIU compiled 27 wins on the season, including victories over #23 Florida Atlantic, Northwestern, Illinois, Rutgers and Hofstra.
 
The Blackbirds landed five on the All-NEC first team, including Cosio and Sobieski, the NEC Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively. Along with her defensive exploits, Zamora was also outstanding at the plate, hitting .364 to rank second in the NEC heading into the postseason. Her .474 on-base percentage is second on the circuit and she paces the Blackbirds with 32 runs scored. Senior outfielder Whitney West (West Hills, CA/El Camino Real) is the NEC hitting leader with a .371 average, and also paces the conference with 66 hits and five triples. She hit .400 versus league rivals. Junior third baseman Kylie Mulholland (Sewell, NJ/Washington Township) hit .333 during the regular season, and improved to .438 in conference games, while slugging .604 against league opponents.
 
After Saint Francis U established a new program record with 13 league wins, junior pitcher Ketarah DeVries (Forreston, IL/Forreston), sophomore first baseman Madison Cabell (Ivor, VA/Southampton) and sophomore shortstop Jordan Seneca (Plum, PA/Plum) joined Norton on the All-NEC first team. DeVries earned NEC Pitcher of the Week acclaim this season three times and posted a 13-5 record with a 2.82 ERA. She finished 6-1 against NEC opponents and her 1.75 ERA ranks second in conference play. Cabell made her second appearance on the All-NEC first team after hitting .333 with 11 homers and 47 RBIs on the year. She ranks in the NEC top-five in homers, RBIs, doubles, slugging percentage and on-base percentage. She belted six of her 11 home runs and slugged .816 in NEC play. Seneca was a three-time NEC Player of the Week and one of four SFU players to finish in double digits in homers as the Red Flash set a new conference single-season record with 78 dingers on the year. She is currently first in the NEC with 58 RBIs, 39 walks and a .478 on-base percentage, while ranking second with 18 homers, 51 runs scored and a .729 slugging percentage.
 
Central Connecticut senior outfielder Evie Rentzel (Dillsburg, PA/Northern York) earned the second All-NEC honor of her career, collecting first team accolades. Rentzel led the Blue Devils in batting average (.336), slugging percentage (.511), on-base percentage (.395), RBIs (26) and homers (4). She hit .375 in conference play.
 
Wagner second baseman Karen Prihoda (Hamilton Square, NJ/The Lawrenceville School) was one of just two freshman voted onto the All-NEC first team. Prihoda wrapped her first year with a team-leading .353 batting average, 55 hits and 11 stolen bases. She is fourth in the NEC in hitting and fifth in hits.
 
Robert Morris, which will be making its eighth NEC Tournament appearance in nine years, had six representatives on the All-NEC second team in freshman pitcher Kaitlin Ellzy (Cadiz, OH/Harrison Central), junior catcher Jordan Gurganus (Chesapeake, VA/Hickory), senior first baseman Lauren Hackett (Glenshaw, PA/Shaler Area), senior second baseman Haileigh Stocks (Jamison, PA/Central Bucks South), and senior outfielders Kristen Gabelt (Ligonier, PA/Ligonier Valley) and Ashley Gerhart (Imperial, PA/West Allegheny). This season Ellzy earned three NEC Pitcher of the Week and two NEC Rookie of the Week honors. She limited opponents to an NEC-low .174 average in league games while posting a 5-1 mark with a 2.03 ERA. On the year, she ranks second in the league with 12 wins. An All-NEC second teamer for the second straight year and a three-time all-star, Gurganus ranks fifth in the conference with a .351 average, and is second in hits (60) and triples (4). Hackett heads into the NEC Tournament hitting .300 against conference opponents. She ranks second on the Colonials with 25 runs and 22 RBIs. A three-time All-NEC honoree, Stocks leads the Colonials with eight home runs and 25 RBIs. She hit a robust .367 with six round trippers against league rivals. Gabelt returned to the All-NEC second team following a strong year at the plate. She leads the Colonials with eight homers and 27 runs scored, and slugged .700 in league play. Gerhart hit an even .300 on the year in earning the third All-NEC honor of her career. She upped that number to .348 against conference opposition to go along with a .632 slugging percentage.
 
Seeded fourth in the upcoming NEC Tournament, Bryant landed two of its seniors, pitcher Elle Madsen (Wheat Ridge, CO/Wheat Ridge) and utility player Hayley Bottino (Canyon Country, Canyon), on the All-NEC second team. Madsen took home her fourth all-conference honor for the Bulldogs. She finished 7-4 in league outings with a 1.98 ERA as opponents hit just .185 against her. Bottino is now a three-time NEC all-star after hitting .382 with a .475 on-base percentage and .706 slugging percentage in league play.
 
Saint Francis U freshman third basemen Kassidy Troxell (Navarre, OH/Perry) earned All-NEC second team honors. Troxell hit .317 with five homers and 19 RBI during the regular season. She blasted four of those round trippers in league play, where she slugged .636 in 16 games.
 
Central Connecticut shortstop Eileen Purcell (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) earned a nod on the second team. In her final season with the Blue Devils the Nutley, NJ product ranked second on the team in batting average (.329), slugging percentage (.469) and runs scored (22), and laced a team-leading 47 hits.
 
Sacred Heart sophomore outfielder Lauren Delgadillo (Rancho Cucamonga, CA/Rancho Cucamonga) paced the Pioneers in hitting (.280), slugging percentage (.415), hits (46), homers (4), RBIs (21) and doubles (10) en-route to second team All-NEC honors. She hit .358 in conference outings.
 
Mount St. Mary designated player Marian Ruf (Mesa, AZ/Red Mountain) rounded out the All-NEC second team honorees. Ruf closed out her junior year with a .278 batting average to go along with three homers and 20 RBIs.
 
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 35th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30).  Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Google+, all @NECsports.