BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. -- Fairmont State Softball was voted second in the Mountain East Conference North Division with a conference vote of the 12 coaches. The Fighting Falcons received one first-place vote with West Liberty picked to win the North Division with 66 points, including 11 first-place votes.

Fairmont State Softball finished the 2021 season with an overall record of 24-17 and 19-13 in conference play. Head Softball Coach John Light enters his sixth season at the helm of the Falcon program with an overall coaching record of 92-110.  During the season, the Fairmont State pitching staff ranked second in the MEC and 21st in the country in team ERA (2.09). All three of Fairmont State's starting pitchers had an ERA below 2.50 during the 2021 season.

The Fighting Falcons return three members of the 2021 Fairmont State softball program who garnered All-Mountain East Conference honors with Caitlyn Kassay, Courtney Moyer, and Emily Riggs.

​Kassay, a junior pitcher from Fairview, W.Va., led the Falcons with a 1.56 ERA during the 2021 season. Kassay made 15 appearances, 10 starts, and had four complete games for the Falcons. She also finished the year with a 6-3 record and tallied 45 strikeouts. Opposing batters hit just .233 against Kassay this season.

Moyer, a sophomore infielder from Apollo, Pa., played in 25 games and made 21 starts for the Falcons. She finished the season with a .339 hitting percentage and had two doubles and a home run for the Falcons. She also had a .424 slugging percentage and a .451 on-base percentage during the 2021 season.

Riggs, a sophomore from Bridgeport, W.Va., finished third on the team with a .345 batting average this season. A starter at third base, Riggs finished the regular season with eight doubles, a triple, a home run and 15 runs batted in. She had a .500 slugging percentage, .471 on-base percentage and also stole five bases for the Falcons. She also committed just two errors and had 34 putouts and 64 assists from her third base position this season.

WLU is the pick to win in the North Division with 66 points, including 11 first-place points. The Hilltoppers are coming off back-to-back MEC Tournament titles and welcome back All-America pitcher Makenzie Amend to go along with fellow first-team all-region selections in centerfielder Katie Beeman and pitcher/first baseman Annie Paterson.

West Virginia State landed atop the poll in the South Division finishing with 64 points, including nine first-team votes. WVSU is coming off a 29-14 season that included a South Division title and a runner-up finish at the MEC Tournament. The Yellow Jackets bring back last year's Freshman of the Year in Autumn Thompson, who was a second-team All-MEC selection along with Emma Ruth. WVSU also returns starter Kasey Murphy who went 11-8 in the circle with a 2.16 ERA to go along with a .346 batting average with seven home runs.

Charleston was picked second in the division with 51 points and had three first-place votes. Concord was picked third with 43 points, followed by West Virginia Wesleyan (41), Glenville State (24) and Davis & Elkins (23).

  MEC North Division
1. West Liberty (11) 66
2. Fairmont State (1) 51
3. Frostburg State 48
4. Notre Dame 39
5. Wheeling 25
6. Alderson Broaddus 17

  MEC South Division
1. West Virginia State (9) 64
2. Charleston (3) 51
3. Concord 43
4. West Virginia Wesleyan 41
5 Glenville State 24
6. Davis & Elkins 23