University of Texas Athletics

Hailey Dolcini is turning heads on and off the softball field.

On Thursday, Dolcini and the Texas Longhorns took on the No. 1 team in the nation, just hours after it was announced the former Big 5 MVP has been included as one of the 10 finalists for the prestigious 2022 Softball Senior CLASS Award.

The award is an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, and goes to one senior or graduate student in each NCAA sport that possess notable achievements in four specific areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. 

The finalists were chosen by a selection committee from the list of 30 candidates announced earlier this season and nationwide fan voting will begin immediately to help select the winner.

Fan votes will be combined with those of the media and Division-I head coaches to determine the winner, which will be announced prior to the 2022 NCAA Women’s College World Series in early June.

For more information on each of the finalists or to vote, visit SeniorCLASSAward.com.

Dolcini, a four-time Big 5 MVP at Fortuna, is enjoying another sensational spring playing at the NCAA Division-I level after transferring from Fresno State for her “super senior” season.

On Thursday evening, Dolcini and the No. 18 Longhorns took on No. 1 Oklahoma, falling 3-0.

Dolcini pitched all seven innings and allowed just three and two earned runs and struck out four.

The Ferndale native is now 13-5 with an ERA of 2.37.

She has appeared in 22 games for Texas (30-11-1) and has 136 strikeouts in 115 innings, while holding opponents to a .162 batting average.

She is third in the Big 12 Conference in strikeouts and 21st in the nation in hits-per-seven innings (4.09).

Coming into Thursday’s game, Dolcini had won nine of her previous 10 decisions, including victories over No. 20 LSU and No. 23 Louisiana.

According to the Senior Class Award website, Dolcini has had tremendous success in the classroom, where she’s earned multiple Mountain West Conference Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-MW honors, while posting a 3.94 GPA between UC Riverside and Fresno State, before transferring to Texas.

According to the website, “Dolcini has been a vital member of her communities since her high school days. She was recognized in USA Today for starting ‘K’s for Kids Cancer,’ which worked to raise and donate $10,000 to non-profit organizations.

“At Fresno State, Dolcini worked with the Poverello House and the Marjaree Mason Center to help with the homeless outreach and support/empower those affected by domestic violence. This past Christmas, she also spent time writing holiday cards to the elderly and those living in a dementia-assisted living facility.”