Posted: May 27, 2011
Utley, who finished an outstanding freshman season with Central Methodist with a record of 24-4, received the NAIA All-America honors after being named the Heart of America Athletic Conference pitcher-of-the-year. Utley became the first pitcher in CMU history to surpass 20 wins in a season, setting single-season records with 24 wins and 10 shutouts in her first collegiate season. Utley also had one save and 24 complete games in her 32 appearances. She posted a 1.25 ERA in 184 2/3 innings of work, while compiling 138 strikeouts to rank her fifth on the CMU single-season list in that category. Utley finished the season ranked in the top 15 in the NAIA for wins and ERA. She led the HAAC in wins, ERA and innings pitched, and was twice selected as the HAAC pitcher-of-the-week during the season.
Utley joins Lynne Biggs as the only NAIA Softball All-Americans from Central Methodist in program history. Utley was one of three players from the HAAC to earn 2011 NAIA Softball All-America honors, joining MidAmerica Nazarene University's Jen Costa, the HAAC player-of-the-year, and Evangel University's Danielle Billings. To see the complete list of 2011 NAIA Softball All-America teams, visit http://naia.cstv.com.
