WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ – Monmouth University Softball and Head Coach Shannon Salsburg has announced the signings of three players, receiving NLI's from Mackenzie Bloss, Bri Lawson, and Kaitlynn Place.
 
"I am beyond excited to add Kaitlynn, Bri and Mackenzie to our softball family," Salsburg said. "All three student-athletes will bring depth and versatility defensively, while adding big sticks to our offensive arsenal.  I am thrilled they are officially Hawks and we can't wait to get them to campus next fall!"
 
Bloss, a Shore Conference outfielder at St. John Vianney, has earned plenty of accolades both on and off the field during her time as a Lancer and as a member of the Nightmare U18 Gold club team.
 
The outfielder helped St. John Vianney capture a Shore Conference championship as a freshman, contributing to the program's 27-1 overall record. She was named the team's Rookie of the Year while also earning a Freshman of the Year nomination from NJ.com. As a junior, she was selected to the Non-Public All-State Second Team and the Shore Conference Second Team and was given the SJV Defensive Player of the Year award.
 
In the classroom, Bloss was named Student of the Month for February 2019 and Student of the Term for the 2020 fall term. An honor roll student, Bloss has also been inducted to the National Honor Society.
 
Lawson is an infielder out of Sun Valley High School in Pennsylvania. The Vanguard student-athlete has also played for two club teams in the state, the PA Chaos and the PA Strikers. She earned a spot in the 2021 Extra Innings Softball rankings, slotting in at No. 77 in the top-500 infielders and No. 142 in the top-500 overall players.
 
As a freshman, Lawson was named Most Valuable Player and was selected to the All Ches-Mont First Team as she helped lead Sun Valley into the playoffs.
 
She was named team captain heading into her junior season and delivered, hitting .593 with a .651 OBP, accumulating nine doubles, three triples and two home runs. Lawson's success led to more recognition, as the infielder was named to the All Ches-Mont First Team and the All-Delco First Team while winning the Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player awards.
 
Off the field, she has maintained honor roll grades each marketing period while taking accelerated classes.
Place, who is intending on majoring in Health Science at MU, is a catcher and utility player from Elmira High School in New York. In addition to her time at Elmira, Place has also played for the Conklin Raiders Gold club team.
 
She has shined in the classroom, earning induction into the National Honor Society and the New Visions Health Program. Place was a STAC Academic All-Star in 2018 and earned the honor of being the First Chair Violinist in Elmira's Symphonic Orchestra. She's currently a member of the Section 4 Student Athlete Committee.
 
Described as being versatile on defense and a heavy hitter on offense by her club team, Place was given the STAC Sportsmanship Award in 2019, and is a two-time winner of the Elmira Express Mike Holleran Award.
 

All three players are slated to join the program in the fall of 2022.