Wolverine Pair Drafted for Women's Pro Softball League
12/7/1998 12:00:00 AM | Softball
ST. PETERSBURG BEACH, Fla. -- University of Michigan first baseman Traci Conrad (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way HS) and outfielder Catherine Davie (Westlake Village, Calif./Westlake HS) were among the 60 players selected in the 1999 Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL) Senior Draft held Dec. 5. The draft was held in conjunction with the National Fastpitch Coaches Association convention.
Conrad, the 1998 Big Ten Player of the Year and an All-America First-Team selection, was the third player selected, going to the Akron Racers (formerly the Orlando Wahoos). Davie, an All-Big Ten First-Team honoree in 1998, was the 19th overall pick, drafted in the fourth round by the Virginia Roadsters.
A co-captain for the 1999 Michigan softball team and a GTE Academic All-America First-Team award recipient, Conrad holds the Michigan career batting average (.391) and runs (166) records and is ranked among the top three in three other all-time statistical records. Davie enters her final Michigan season carrying a .328 career batting average, with 11 home runs and 39 doubles, both third-best among all-time U-M hitters.
Conrad and Davie were among the six Big Ten Conference players taken in the 1999 WPSL Senior Draft. Minnesota outfielder Stephanie Midthun (No. 12) joined Davie as a Virginia Roadsters' draftee. Two Ohio State players, catcher Jaime Chenevey (No. 16) and outfielder Cheryl Anne Palaroan (No. 48) were selected by Akron with Conrad. Purdue second baseman Samantha Mercier (No. 44) was picked by the Tampa Bay FireStix.
The WPSL, America's major professional fastpitch softball league for women, begins its third season of play in May 1999.
WPSL Notes
• The 1998 rosters of the Orlando Wahoos (now Akron Racers) and Virginia Roadsters had a former Wolverine. Kellyn Tate, a 1998 Michigan graduate, played for Orlando, while Tracy Carr, a 1996 U-M graduate, played for Virginia.
