Haven Dwyer, Alise Moneypenny, Gracie Brinkerhoff
Purdue Fort Wayne Softball Signs Three to NLIs
11/18/2020 10:18:00 AM | Softball
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Purdue Fort Wayne softball head coach Germaine Fairchild announced that three student-athletes have signed National Letters of Intent to play softball for the Mastodons. Haven Dwyer (Cincinnati, Ohio/Archbishop McNicholas High School), Alise Moneypenny (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee High School), Gracie Brinkerhoff (New Boston, Michigan/Huron High School) will join the 'Dons to compete in the 2022 softball season.
"Our 2021 class is comprised of three outstanding people and student-athletes whose strengths will immediately contribute to our team culture, program goals and academic performance," Fairchild said. "We are looking forward to the addition of their individuality, athleticism, work ethic and pace-setting ability. We wish them all the best in the final year of their high school campaigns, and we are so excited to welcome them into our Mastodon Family next fall."
Dwyer, a 5-foot-6 right-hand pitcher, has two varsity letters to her name. With the Rockets, she has pitched 175 innings and struck out 254 batters, garnering a .600 earned run average. Dwyer also takes the plate, and has knocked in nine home runs en route to a .586 batting average, a .636 on base percentage and 76 runs batted in. She also has 92 stolen bases to date. In 2019, Dwyer was named the Greater Catholic League Co-ed Softball Player of the Year. She was also selected to the GCL All-League teams in 2018 and 2019, leading the Rockets to league championships in both years. Dwyer played club ball with the OFC Heat from 2012-15 and the Ohio Hawks Gold Hutchinson from 2016-21. With OWGH, her squad placed ninth at the Premier Girls Fastpitch National Tournament in 2017. Dwyer is a member of the service club, spirit club, cooking club and the basketball team.
"Through her diligent training, Haven Dwyer has excelled in the process of mastering movement pitches, and has an unshakeable demeanor in the circle," Fairchild said.
Moneypenny is a 5-foot-6 catcher that has won three letters under Chris Roberts at Shawnee High School. Through her first two seasons, she averaged a .339 batting average, a .400 on-base percentage and a .471 slugging percentage. On the defensive side, she totaled 154 putouts, 19 assists and a .989 fielding percentage. Moneypenny was selected to the 2019 All-Conference and All-County Second Teams. She led the Braves to an 11-5 record in 2019 and a runner-up finish in the district championship and Kenton Trail tournaments. She played club ball for Team Ohio Grey (2017-18) and the Ohio Hawks Gold (2018-20). With Team Ohio, Moneypenny led the squad to the 2018 ASA Gold Nationals. While with the Ohio Hawks, the team won the 2020 JO Cup and was the runner up at the 2019 Dayton Metro tournament. While not on the softball diamond, she was participating in the Symphonic, Women's, and Concert Choirs, the homecoming committee, student council and Tri-M Honor Society. Moneypenny earned the President's Education Award and Awards for Excellence in chemistry, English and Spanish.
"Alise Moneypenny is a leader who stands out behind the plate with her competitive drive and passion for the game of softball," Fairchild said.
Brinkerhoff is a 5-foot-7 right handed pitcher that is the reigning team MVP two years running. While her junior season was cut short due to COVID-19, she accumulated a slew of awards in her freshman and sophomore seasons. In 2018 as a freshman, she was named to the All-Region and All-District teams and the All-League Second Team. She started off her career with a bang, as she threw a no-hitter as a freshman. The following season, she repeated as MVP on her way to earning a place on the All-Region, All-District and All-League teams. The News Herald Times also named Brinkerhoff to its First Team. For her career, she is 21-18 with 246 innings pitched and 279 strikeouts. As a sophomore, she had a 1.8 ERA and a .320 batting average. As a sophomore, she led the Chiefs to a district championship. Brinkerhoff played club ball for the Devils Fastpitch (2012-14), Motor City Madness Fastpitch (2014-15) and Finesse Fastpitch (2015-21). In addition to her softball success, Brinkerhoff was a four-year starter on the Huron volleyball team and was the team MVP and All-League Honorable Mention in 2019. She is also involved in DECA, National Honor Society, Chief Pride Club and link crew, and was the class secretary. In the classroom, she has a 4.017 cumulative GPA, earning the Principal's Honor award in all of her first three years.
"Gracie Brinkerhoff will bring with her a wealth of high-level competitive softball experience, which she has used to hone her presence and precision in the circle," Fairchild said.
The three signees will join the Mastodon squad in the fall of 2021.
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"Our 2021 class is comprised of three outstanding people and student-athletes whose strengths will immediately contribute to our team culture, program goals and academic performance," Fairchild said. "We are looking forward to the addition of their individuality, athleticism, work ethic and pace-setting ability. We wish them all the best in the final year of their high school campaigns, and we are so excited to welcome them into our Mastodon Family next fall."
Dwyer, a 5-foot-6 right-hand pitcher, has two varsity letters to her name. With the Rockets, she has pitched 175 innings and struck out 254 batters, garnering a .600 earned run average. Dwyer also takes the plate, and has knocked in nine home runs en route to a .586 batting average, a .636 on base percentage and 76 runs batted in. She also has 92 stolen bases to date. In 2019, Dwyer was named the Greater Catholic League Co-ed Softball Player of the Year. She was also selected to the GCL All-League teams in 2018 and 2019, leading the Rockets to league championships in both years. Dwyer played club ball with the OFC Heat from 2012-15 and the Ohio Hawks Gold Hutchinson from 2016-21. With OWGH, her squad placed ninth at the Premier Girls Fastpitch National Tournament in 2017. Dwyer is a member of the service club, spirit club, cooking club and the basketball team.
"Through her diligent training, Haven Dwyer has excelled in the process of mastering movement pitches, and has an unshakeable demeanor in the circle," Fairchild said.
Moneypenny is a 5-foot-6 catcher that has won three letters under Chris Roberts at Shawnee High School. Through her first two seasons, she averaged a .339 batting average, a .400 on-base percentage and a .471 slugging percentage. On the defensive side, she totaled 154 putouts, 19 assists and a .989 fielding percentage. Moneypenny was selected to the 2019 All-Conference and All-County Second Teams. She led the Braves to an 11-5 record in 2019 and a runner-up finish in the district championship and Kenton Trail tournaments. She played club ball for Team Ohio Grey (2017-18) and the Ohio Hawks Gold (2018-20). With Team Ohio, Moneypenny led the squad to the 2018 ASA Gold Nationals. While with the Ohio Hawks, the team won the 2020 JO Cup and was the runner up at the 2019 Dayton Metro tournament. While not on the softball diamond, she was participating in the Symphonic, Women's, and Concert Choirs, the homecoming committee, student council and Tri-M Honor Society. Moneypenny earned the President's Education Award and Awards for Excellence in chemistry, English and Spanish.
"Alise Moneypenny is a leader who stands out behind the plate with her competitive drive and passion for the game of softball," Fairchild said.
Brinkerhoff is a 5-foot-7 right handed pitcher that is the reigning team MVP two years running. While her junior season was cut short due to COVID-19, she accumulated a slew of awards in her freshman and sophomore seasons. In 2018 as a freshman, she was named to the All-Region and All-District teams and the All-League Second Team. She started off her career with a bang, as she threw a no-hitter as a freshman. The following season, she repeated as MVP on her way to earning a place on the All-Region, All-District and All-League teams. The News Herald Times also named Brinkerhoff to its First Team. For her career, she is 21-18 with 246 innings pitched and 279 strikeouts. As a sophomore, she had a 1.8 ERA and a .320 batting average. As a sophomore, she led the Chiefs to a district championship. Brinkerhoff played club ball for the Devils Fastpitch (2012-14), Motor City Madness Fastpitch (2014-15) and Finesse Fastpitch (2015-21). In addition to her softball success, Brinkerhoff was a four-year starter on the Huron volleyball team and was the team MVP and All-League Honorable Mention in 2019. She is also involved in DECA, National Honor Society, Chief Pride Club and link crew, and was the class secretary. In the classroom, she has a 4.017 cumulative GPA, earning the Principal's Honor award in all of her first three years.
"Gracie Brinkerhoff will bring with her a wealth of high-level competitive softball experience, which she has used to hone her presence and precision in the circle," Fairchild said.
The three signees will join the Mastodon squad in the fall of 2021.
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