2014 Nebraska Softball Media Guide | Page 29

dawna tyson sophomore l infielder l 5-5 corona, calif. l corona hs tyson’s career highs # » Hits: 2 (eight times) » Runs: 2 » Doubles: none » Walks: 1 (eight times) 3 Career honors & awards » Hitting Streak: 6 games » RBIs: 3 (twice) » Home Runs: 1 (three times) » Stolen Bases: none Dawna Tyson performed well enough to earn significant playing time as a freshman on a talented 2013 Husker roster that featured seven all-conference performers. She made 29 total starts last spring, earning 20 starts as the designated player and nine starts at first base. She split time early in the season with Mattie Fowler at first base, before sharing time the rest of the year with secondteam All-Big Ten selection Courtney Breault as the designated player. Despite the challenge of not being an everyday player, Tyson responded by batting .264 with three homers and 16 RBIs in 91 at bats. Tyson also drew eight walks and was hit by eight pitches to post a .374 on-base percentage. Her eight hit-by-pitches ranked second among all freshmen in school history and in a tie for 10th overall. Tyson produced six of her eight multi-hit efforts in an eight-game stretch in March during her first period of consistent playing time. Her production and experience gained during that stretch should bode well for Tyson as she bids for a full-time starting role in 2014. Tyson began her hot streak with a 3-for-7 doubleheader at Oklahoma State on March 3. She hit her first career homer in game one and added a three-run homer in game two. Tyson had two hits in game two of the doubleheader, beginning an impressive streak that saw her post five consecutive multihit games and six multi-hit efforts in a seven-game stretch. After homering in both games against Oklahoma State, Tyson made it a home run in three consecutive starts, and she tied her career high with three RBIs the next weekend at Wichita State, when she went 2-for-2 and scored a career-high two runs. She was honored by the conference as the Big Ten Freshman of the Week following her performance at Wichita State. In her home debut the next weekend, she went 4-for-6 in a doubleheader with New Mexico State. She added two more multi-hit games in mid-week action the next week to bring her season average to .396 on March 20. Tyson’s final multi-hit game came as part of a 2-for-4 effort that included a run scored at Iowa on April 6. Each of her final 10 at bats came in a pinch-hitting role over the final month of the season. Defensively, Tyson committed only two errors in 74 chances at first base to post a .973 fielding percentage. Freshman season [2013] Before Nebraska » Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll (Fall 2012) Career capsule One of three Californians in Nebraska’s freshman class, Tyson was a standout for Corona High School and for the Corona Angels club program, coached by her father Marty. Dawna also has family connections to Nebraska, as her sister Tori was a pitcher and outfielder for the Huskers from 2008 to 2011. Dawna completed her high school career at Corona High School in Corona, Calif., in the spring of 2012, recording her team’s only two hits in a first-round playoff loss. She was a four-time all-league selection for Corona, earning first-team accolades as a sophomore, junior and senior. Following her senior season, Tyson was one of 22 seniors from Riverside County selected to participate in the Orange and Riverside counties all-star game. She was joined on the team by fellow Husker sophomore Emily Lockman. As a senior, Tyson was a first-team All-Big VIII league selection, and she earned All-Inland Valley honorable-mention accolades from the Press-Enterprise. As a junior in 2011, Tyson was named to the All-CIF Southern Section Division I first team. Tyson earned a spot on the Southern Section Division I second team as a sophomore in 2010, while also being recognized as an all-area honorable-mention selection. Tyson helped lead Corona High School to a runner-up finish in the 2010 CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs. In her second straight season as a team captain in 2010, Tyson hit .341 with a .491 on-base percentage, 16 walks and 23 RBIs. She was the team leader in RBIs and her .341 average tied for team-high honors. In addition to her individual high school accolades, Tyson was invited to at ѕ