SAN FRANCISCO – An influx of youth energized Academy of Art University softball throughout its 2017 season. Highlights from a squad that would produce the most All-PacWest Team honorees in program history included the best collective single-season batting average (.315), six doubleheader sweeps, ART U's first two no-hitters against NCAA Division II opponents, and the Urban Knights' fourth time posting at least 25 victories.

"This year was crucial for our development as a program," said head coach Sonja Garnett. "We saw four freshmen receive All-PacWest honors and one sophomore. This is a testament to where the program is heading. Even with losing two key pitchers from 2016 to injury, we still improved significantly, finishing .500 overall and even better in conference play."

The first day of February brought the start of a three-part homestand which included SF State, Cal State East Bay (Feb. 3), and Northwest Nazarene (Feb. 13). In the victorious side of a split with the Gators, freshman infielder Freddie Carrillo connected for a two-run double in just her second collegiate at-bat and freshman pitcher Hannah Rose Balke (21-11) picked up the relief win in what was the collegiate debut for six Knights.

CSUEB swept a rainy doubleheader, but Academy of Art bounced back by taking two from NNU, both on 5-1 scores. Freshman infielder Gracie Sotomayor drove in run in each of ART U's three-run difference-making rallies while Balke and sophomore pitcher True Park (2-11) each turned in complete game victories.

The Knights then traveled to Tucson, Arizona for their first-ever Cactus Classic Tournament which saw them go 3-3. Scoring eight runs in back-to-back games ensured Academy of Art wins over Lincoln Memorial and Fort Lewis on the first day then a Texas two-step favored the south as ART U hung with but ultimately fell to then No. 2 West Texas A&M and Lubbock Christian. The six-game tournament would end on Feb. 19 with a split against University of Mary that featured another seven-inning gem from Balke and two big runs batted in from sophomore catcher Taylor Ah Mook Sang. Sotomayor would drive in runs in five of those six contests to capture PacWest Freshman of the Week.

"Early in season, we always are trying to see who steps up and competes when the games matter," said Garnett. "We saw some great things from our athletes in our opening games against SF State and especially at the Cactus Classic where we faced nationally-ranked West Texas A&M. We were playing well and improving as we headed into conference play against Dominican and that made our pre-conference games productive."

In their first PacWest Conference matchup, the Knights split with Dominican including a thrilling nine-inning affair that ended on Sotomayor's walk-off double. After rain forced the cancellation of a pairing with then No. 1 Humboldt State, Academy of Art put together four consecutive victories, sweeping both BYU-Hawaii (Mar. 4) and Notre Dame de Namur (Mar. 10). Combining with ART U's all-inclusive "One Chain" offense was stellar pitching from both Balke and Park. The stretch fittingly concluded on Balke tossing a no-hitter, the program's first against a NCAA Division II opponent, in an 8-0 victory over the Argonauts. Carrillo would become the second PacWest Freshman of the Week and Balke was selected PacWest Pitcher of the Week during that seven-day window.

The Knights next embarked upon a Southern California roadtrip where they faced three of what would be the top four teams in the conference standings at the year's end. Following a pair of losses to eventual PacWest champion California Baptist on Mar. 14, Academy of Art posted a split in two low-scoring games at Azusa Pacific on Mar. 16. Balke turned in another complete game with a season-best eight strikeouts and sophomore outfielder Juliana Lopez drove in the winning run for what was a 3-1 victory. Two tough days ensued with Concordia sweeping two doubleheaders despite three scores that were settled by three runs or less.

Back home, ART U recovered with back-to-back splits with UH Hilo in late March. Nearly every bat played a role in the 10-9 win on Mar. 25 and senior pitcher Alexa Peters picked up her first career save with solid relief work. Then Mar. 26 brought an exciting nine-inning battle that went to the Vulcans despite a clutch three-run homer from sophomore infielder Brenna Youngquist in the bottom of the seventh. Academy of Art, however, came back with an early rally to win game two 5-2. Three days later, the Knights split with Hawaii Pacific as Balke's one-hit shutout propelled them to the 3-0 victory.

For the fifth consecutive year, ART U then entered the Tournament of Champions in Turlock where they started by prevailing over Simon Fraser 9-8 in an extra-inning rally. Losses to Western Washington, Western Oregon, and Central Washington gave way to a 9-1 run-rule triumph over Montana State Billings and a tightly-contested loss to then No. 15 Cal State Monterey Bay on the final day.

"We competed this season," said Garnett. "We played very close games with some prestigious programs, including California Baptist, Monterey Bay, and West Texas A&M. We were the second best hitting team in conference, played solid defense, and freshman Hannah Rose Balke had a historic year for the program, breaking our single season wins record. I couldn't be prouder of this team."

Local for the three weeks that followed, Academy of Art proceeded to win seven of its next eight games, starting with a 25-run sweep of Chaminade on Apr. 4. Freshman utility Dominique Seva'aetasi would highlight the twinbill with a 6-for-6 day that included seven runs batted in and earned her PacWest Player of the Week. Balke was once again untouchable in game one against Holy Names on Apr. 9 as she tossed her second no-hitter of the season in another sweep and went on to be named PacWest Pitcher of the Week.

"I am very impressed by the performance of Hannah Rose Balke this year," said Garnett. "She is coachable, accountable, and focused on being the best she can be for the team. Hannah Rose threw a lot this season and, while she had many great performances, she also grew and learned through some tough outings as well. I am excited to watch her progress at ART U."

Senior Day came a bit early on Apr. 15 when the Knights hosted Holy Names. After honoring outfielders Mariah Latham and Jessica West as well as Peters prior, Academy of Art had all three contribute to a 7-6 win in the opener of what ended up being a split. West, who set the program's single-season walks record in 2017, was issued two free passes and ended up scoring the winning run.

"We will greatly miss the work ethic and dedication of our three seniors, Mariah, Alexa, and Jessica," said Garnett. "They helped set the stage for our future."

ART U saw a series of highlights come in its sweep of NDNU on Apr. 19 as junior Brenna Mitchell hit her first homer of the year to help Academy of Art win game one 6-5 and Balke became the program's winningest single-season pitcher with her 21st victory in the 9-4 finale. Three days later, the Knights split with Dominican again, scoring 14 times on 15 hits in a successful game two. And, in the season finale, then No. 24 Dixie State managed to come away with two wins in Utah.

"The PacWest was very competitive this year, which was proven by the fact that only five wins separated the fourth place from the eighth place team," said Garnett. "In this conference, every game we play matters. We did well early in season and were able to split several series this year. While we would like to come away with more sweeps, I am proud that we consistently competed."

The year ended with Academy of Art at 25-25 overall including a strong 14-8 record at home and 17-15 in conference play for eighth overall.

More history came in the postseason when a total of six Urban Knights were recognized on the All-PacWest Teams. Balke and Seva'aetasi made the Second Team while West, Carrillo, Sotomayor, and Youngquist earned Third Team, demonstrating the versatility Academy of Art showed all year.

"Our freshman class catapulted our growth as a program," said Garnett. "We have a very solid foundation at ART U in our upperclassmen, but each of our freshmen came in, made an immediate impact, and played a crucial role on the team. Our six PacWest award recipients all worked very hard and certainly deserved those honors. Again, the fact that five of these were underclassmen is very encouraging for the future."