Freshman outfielder Ashley Lane, a resident of Westbury and student at Hofstra University, was named the Colonial Athletic Association's (CAA) Softball Rookie of the Year in a vote of the conference's coaches. Lane helped Hofstra finish in first place in the CAA regular season standings by two games, giving the Pride the right to host the CAA Tournament, which took place May 13-15.

Lane had a spectacular freshman season for the Pride, entering the CAA Tournament with a team best .364 batting average and 38 runs batted in. She also hit nine homers this spring, setting a new Hofstra record for home runs by a freshman. Lane has been named the CAA Rookie of the Week four times and the Player of the Week once. She earned her Player of the Week honor on Feb. 23 after a spectacular performance at the South Florida/Best Western Invitational, where she led the Pride to a runner-up finish. She batted .571 (8-14) at the tournament, with game winning homers in a 3-1 win over Maryland and a 1-0 win over Tulsa and a 4-for-4 effort in a 5-1 win over North Carolina State.

Lane played five years of softball at W.T. Clarke High School, where she was named a Second-Team All-American as a senior. She was also the Nassau County Player of the Year as a senior, a three-time All-New York State selection and a four-time MVP of the W.T. Clark girls basketball team.