Penn State freshman third baseman Allison Oneacre was named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division I National Freshman of the Year Top 25 list, according to an April 23 announcement from the association.
The recognition highlights Oneacre’s strong performance in her first season, as she has already set several program records and earned multiple national and conference honors. The award is given annually by the NFCA to honor outstanding athletic achievement among Division I freshmen softball student-athletes.
Oneacre, from Alpharetta, Georgia, holds Penn State’s single-season record for runs batted in with 56 and also leads all Nittany Lion freshmen with 16 home runs. She currently leads her team in batting average (.385), OPS (1.361), doubles (12), home runs (16), RBI (56), slugging percentage (.846), on-base percentage (.514) and assists (68). In addition, she ranks fifth in total RBI and eighth in slugging percentage within the Big Ten Conference this season.
Her accolades include being named National Freshman of the Week by both D1Softball and Softball America on February 17. She was also ranked as Softball America’s No. 1 third baseman on March 3 and No. 5 shortstop at midseason. Oneacre has twice been recognized as Big Ten Freshman of the Week this year—the first Penn State player since joining the league in 1992 to earn back-to-back weekly honors—and is only the second Nittany Lion ever selected for this NFCA Top 25 list.
This year’s group of finalists represents athletes from across eleven NCAA Division I conferences and twenty-two universities nationwide, including six players from Big Ten schools such as UCLA, Nebraska, Northwestern, and Purdue alongside Penn State’s Oneacre. The top ten will be announced May 7; three finalists will be released May 20; and a winner will be revealed May 26.
The NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year award was established in 2014 to recognize exceptional freshmen athletes at various collegiate levels.
