Jocelyn Erickson joins Skylar Wallace, the 2023 recipient, as the only two Gators to win the award.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Friday morning Jocelyn Erickson of the Florida softball team was officially announced as the TUCCI/National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division I Player of the Year. This is the second consecutive season a Gators has won the prestigious award as Skylar Wallace was the first to claim the honor in 2023.
Erickson turned in one of the best individual performances as a catcher at UF in program history. The talented left hander set the program’s new single-season record for RBI with 86 on the year, which surpassed previous record holder Megan Bush’s mark of 80 in 2011. The duo now stands as the only two Gators to have recorded 80 or more RBI in a year. Offensively, she also finished third in program history with seven SAC flies only behind Bush’s nine in 2011 and Charla Echols 10 in 2022.
The Phoenix, Ariz., native’s defensive prowess behind the plate also helped her set the new UF single-season record for lowest stolen base percentage against with a mark of .316 as she threw out 13 of the 19 runners attempting to steal this season.
Erickson finished the year with a .382 (73-for-191) average at the plate with 15 doubles, 15 home runs, 50 runs scored and 50 walks in addition to being 10-for-10 on stolen base attempts.
The sophomore’s stats turned into numerous accolades this season as she became just the eighth SEC Player of the Year in program history, the first Diamond Sports/NFCA Catcher of the year at UF and joined Kendra Falby as the second and third players to ever be named Rawlings Gold Glove Award winners.
With Erickson earning this year’s NFCA Division I Player of the Year award, the Gators are now the only program to have won the award in back-to-back years.
The Player of the Year award was created to honor the outstanding athletic achievements among softball student-athletes. In 2019, the Association expanded the award to include a Player and Pitcher of the Year.
The awards are voted on by the selected members of the NFCA Division I All-American Committee with one head coach representing each of the NFCA’s 10 regions. To be eligible, a student-athlete’s head coach must be a member.
Jocelyn Erickson | Sophomore | Catcher | Phoenix, Ariz.
* 2024 CWSA Honda Award Top 4 Finalist
* 2024 Women’s College World Series All-Tournament Team
* 2024 Diamond Sports/NFCA Catcher of the Year
* 2024 NFCA All-American First Team – Catcher – Unanimous
* 2024 Rawlings Gold Glove Award – Catcher
* 2024 Softball America Defender of the Year
* 2024 Softball America All-American First Team
* 2024 D1Softball.com All-American First Team
* 2024 SEC Player of the Year
* 2024 All-SEC First Team
* 2024 SEC All-Defensive Team – Catcher
Category
National Rank
SEC Rank
Value
Batting Average
127
3
0.382
Caught Stealing By
25
2
13
Doubles
60
6
15
Hits
33
4
73
Home Runs
50
7
15
On Base Percentage
49
5
0.494
RBIs
2
1
86
RBI Per Game
6
1
1.251
Sacrifice Flies
5
1
7
Slugging Percentage
80
7
0.696
Total Bases
27
5
133
Walks Per Game
62
9
0.64
TUCCI/NFCA Division I Player of the Year Winners
* 2024 – Jocelyn Erickson – Florida – Catcher
* 2023 – Skylar Wallace<https://floridagators.com/sports/softball/roster/skylar-wallace/15657> – Florida – Shortstop
* 2022 – Jocelyn Alo – Oklahoma – Designated Player
* 2021 – Rachel Garcia – UCLA – Utility/Pitcher
* 2020 – Award Not Presented
* 2019 – Abbey Cheek – Kentucky – Third Base
* 2018 – Rachel Garcia – UCLA – Pitcher
* 2017 – Megan Good – James Madison – Pitcher
* 2016 – Sierra Romero – Michigan – Second Base
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