STANFORD, Calif. - Stanford was recognized with four NFCA All-West Region selections, representing the Cardinal's most recipients since four were also recognized in 2012.
The awards honor softball student-athletes from the NFCA's 10 regions with first, second and third-team selections. All awarded student-athletes now become eligible for the 2023 NFCA Division I All-America squads.
Highlighting Stanford's recipients were first-team choices River Mahler (second base) and Alana Vawter (pitcher), joined by Taylor Gindlesperger (second team) and Aly Kaneshiro (third team). It's the first time the Cardinal has placed two players on the first team since 2011, when Teagan Gerhart, Ashley Hansen, Sarah Hassman and Jenna Rich were recognized.
The Cardinal was last awarded four All-West Region selections in 2012, when its haul included Jenna Rich (first team), Teagan Gerhart (second team), Leah White (second team) and Hanna Winter (sec-ond team).
Last week, Mahler and Vawter were also named All-Pac-12 First Team picks while Gindlesperger made the second team. Kaneshiro was an All-Defensive Team honoree.
The only Pac-12 player to receive all-conference, all-defensive and all-freshman recognition, Mahler has enjoyed an impressive debut season. Maher leads the Cardinal and ranks eighth in the Pac-12 in batting average (.389) while also pacing the team in hits (61) and walks (21).
Vawter is a three-time All-West Region honoree, also earning first-team honors in 2021 and being named to the second team in 2022. One of the country's elite pitchers, Vawter (17-8, 1.85 ERA) has started 22 games, striking out 133 hitters in 163.0 innings to go along with three shutouts. Vawter's 1.07 walks allowed per seven innings total ranks 21st in the nation. In four seasons, Vawter ranks among the top-five at Stanford in wins (4th - 73), shutouts (5th - 25) and strikeouts (5th - 505).
Gindlesperger is also a three-time All-West Region selection, having been named to the third team in 2021-22. In addition to leading the team in runs (33), doubles (14), total bases (84) and stolen bases (8), Gindlesperger ranks second with a .331 batting average. She is also the Cardinal's all-time leader in career triples (24) and three shy of breaking the program's single-season record (9). Gindlesperger also ranks sixth in school history in career steals (51).
Kaneshiro has been a key contributor to a defense boasting a .977 fielding percentage which ranks third in the Pac-12 and 12th in the country. Kaneshiro has thrown out 13 of 23 baserunners, ranking 28th in the nation in runners caught stealing. In addition to her defensive brilliance behind the plate, Kaneshiro leads the Cardinal in home runs (6) and RBI (33).
Stanford (40-13, 14-10 Pac-12) has been awarded the No. 9 overall seed in the NCAA Championship and will host its first regional in 12 years when competition gets underway on Friday afternoon against Long Beach State (6 p.m., ESPNU).
Stanford owns a 47-43 record in NCAA competition and will be making its 20th appearance in program history. The Cardinal has qualified for the postseason in four straight seasons, including a memorable 2022 campaign in which Stanford won the Tuscaloosa Regional and reached its first Super Regional since 2011.