By Kevin Farr
Murray State Sports Information
Fresh off another spectacular run to the World Series, national honors continue rolling in for the Murray State softball team as pitching coach Charli Crawford has been named NJCAA Division II Easton/NFCA Assistant Coach of the Year.

Crawford has been an integral part of the Lady Aggie staff for the past five years, while working with a strong pitching staff year in and year out.

This year, that group led the way in a 58-game Murray State winning streak. In a combined 354 innings, that foursome tallied a 1.52 combined earned run average while striking out 374 and walking just 73. Opponents hit only .198 off of Crawford's troops.

"Chari has handled all our pitching and pitching calling the last five years and we wouldn't be where we are without her," said head coach Aaron Mullens. "She does a fabulous job and has tremendous loyalty to the program. She does a lot of the grunt work that not a lot of people normally see.

"The amazing thing is that she's a volunteer coach and does it because she loves softball and loves being around the players. That's what makes her extremely special. Her contribution to the program is priceless to me. This is a well-earned honor, without question."

This award salutes the efforts of coaches from the various NFCA membership categories for their tireless dedication to the sport of softball and to the continued education, growth and development of young women, both on and off the playing field. All division winners will be recognized on Dec. 9 during the NFCA Convention's annual Awards Brunch.
The winners were nominated by NFCA member coaches and selected by a panel of their peers on the NFCA Awards Committee.