by 
San Manuel Miner
Five members of the back-to-back State Champion Miners’ softball team were named to the AIA All-Division IV Softball Team. Felicia Medina, Alyssa Cuellar, Angelica Zuniga, Ashley Vargas, and Lyana Waddell were named All-Division. All five players were named All-Section previously. Waddell was also the Division IV, Section VI Co-Player of the Year.
Median, a junior, batted .539 with 16 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homeruns, and 48 RBI. Her OPS was 1.460. In the section rankings, she finished fifth in batting average, second in RBI, and third in runs.
Cuellar, a junior, batted .506 with 6 doubles, 5 triples, 10 homeruns, and 52 RBI. Her OPS was 1.636. In the section rankings, she finished first in homeruns, slugging percentage, and RBI. She finished second in runs.
Zuniga, a 2014 graduate, batted .420 with 5 doubles, 3 triples, 4 homeruns, and 28 RBI. Her OPS was 1.177. In the section rankings, she finished fifth in homeruns.
Vargas, a sophomore, batted .529 with a double.
Waddell, a sophomore, is one of the top pitchers in the state in any division. She posted a record of 27 – 2 with a 1.51 ERA. She pitched 26 complete games with 13 shutouts. Her 190 strikeouts tied for first in Section VI. Her ERA was second-best and her 27 wins were the most in the section.
The Miners won their ninth State Softball Championship, and second in a row, this past season. Their nine titles rank among the most all-time in the state.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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