For the first time in history, a Pitt softball player was named to the Eastern College… For the first time in history, a Pitt softball player was named to the Eastern College Athletic Conference Softball All-Star second team.

And it happened twice.

Jessica Dignon and Samantha Card, who were both named to the All-Star squad, helped the Panthers to a 31-25 overall record and a school-record12 Big East wins. It was the second time in three years the Panthers reached the 30-win mark.

“It was an awesome year, we had a lot of firsts,” said Dignon, whose eligibility at Pitt ran out after this spring.

“We just tried to push each other every day. We’re super competitive with each other.”

Dignon, who’s now playing professionally with the Washington Glory, batted .377 for the Panthers in 2008 while leading the team in plate appearances, runs and hits. Card led Pitt in home runs, total bases and sported a team-best .384 batting average.

The two were tied for the lead in RBIs with 44.

Card was in her first season as a catcher after transferring from Florida International.

Dignon said she plans on returning to Pitt in the fall to finish her degree in communications.