The South Atlantic Conference Announces 2022 SAC Softball Major Award Winners
ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSac.com) – Anderson's Kayson Boatner was voted the 2022 South Atlantic Conference Softball Player of the Year, while teammate Laken Maxwell was named the Conference's Pitcher of the Year. In addition, Lenoir-Rhyne's Cassidy Wall was named Freshman of the Year and Anderson's head coach Tommy Hewitt was tabbed the Coach of the Year, the SAC Office announced today.
Boatner, a senior infielder from Phenix City, Ala., had an outstanding season at the plate as she finished the regular season as the league leader in runs batted in with 61, home runs with 23 and runs batted in per game at 1.39 percent. She ranks second in batting average with .448 and is third in hits with 34. At the plate, she batted .448 for the year with 23 home runs and one stolen base. She was named SAC AstroTurf Player of the Week once this season.
Maxwell, a sophomore pitcher from Bowdon, Ga., leads the conference in victories with 20, while also throwing 12 complete games, posting a 1.66 earned run average with 228 strikeouts and seven shutouts in her 151.2 innings of work. She was named SAC AstroTurf Pitcher of the Week for her efforts on four separate occasions.
Wall, a freshman catcher/utility player from Davidson, N.C., had an outstanding start to her collegiate career for the Bears. She batted .359 for the season while adding 16 doubles, eight home runs, 33 runs scored and 48 runs batted in on the season. She also had a .408 on-base percentage and a .615 slugging percentage.
Hewitt earns the conference Coach of the Year honor after leading the Trojans to a SAC Regular Season Championship title. Under his guidance, the Trojans have been ranked as high as No. 13 nationally and are currently ranked No. 1 in the NCAA Southeast Region Poll. Hewitt's Trojans will enter the tournament as the No. 1 seed with a program-best 37-7 regular season record.
The SAC Softball Awards will be presented at the 2022 SAC Softball Championship at Lincoln Memorial's Dorothy Neely Softball Complex in Harrogate, Tenn, and will take place at the conclusion of game #2 on Friday, April 29 to honor the softball regular season award recipients.
2022 SAC Softball All-Conference
All-SAC First Team
OF – Savannah Moorefield, Lenoir-Rhyne
OF – Natalie Corbin, Carson-Newman
OF – Madison Henry, Lincoln Memorial
1B – Kayson Boatner, Anderson
2B – Emily Harris, Carson-Newman
SS – Leah Sohm, Carson-Newman
3B – Heaven Maness, Wingate
DP – Maddie Carpenter, Anderson
UTL/Non-P – Hannah Towery, Newberry
UTL/P - Sydney Kale, Wingate
C – Kylee Leonhardt, Lenoir-Rhyne
P – Laken Maxwell, Anderson
P – Lauren Rakes, Lenoir-Rhyne
All-SAC Second Team
OF – Mary Vandergriff, Carson-Newman
OF – Cassidy Wall, Lenoir-Rhyne
OF – Mallena Wright, Newberry
1B – Macey Hughes, Carson-Newman
2B – Julia Mardigian, Lenoir-Rhyne
SS – Hannah Whitaker, Anderson
3B – Hannah Jennings, Lenoir-Rhyne
DP – Anna Alloway, Tusculum
UTL/Non-P – Ashley Parnell, Limestone
UTL/P - Emily Sappington, Tusculum
C – Mackenzie Turner, Newberry
P – Emma Frost, Lincoln Memorial
P – Harlie Duncan, Anderson
All-SAC Third Team
OF – Olivia Rose Wheeler, Anderson
OF – Mya Maddox, Tusculum
OF – SieAnna Cameron, Carson-Newman
1B – Sierra Brogdon, Newberry
2B – Sara Stroud, Wingate
SS – Kayla Smith, Queens
3B – Jordyn Thompson, Queens
DP – Carmen Holt, Carson-Newman
UTL/Non-P – Farley Park, Mars Hill
UTL/P - Hali Scott, Wingate
C – McKenzie Henry, Lincoln Memorial
P – Morgan Beeler, Lenoir-Rhyne
P – Jordan Dunn, Queens
Freshman of the Year
Cassidy Wall, Lenoir-Rhyne
Player of the Year
Kayson Boatner, Anderson
Pitcher of the Year
Laken Maxwell, Anderson
Coach of the Year
Tommy Hewitt, Anderson
SAC Statistical Champions
Team Batting Average – Carson-Newman (.360)
Team Slugging Percentage – Anderson (.571)
Team On-Base Percentage – Carson-Newman (.423)
Team Runs Scored Per Game – Carson-Newman (7.42)
Team Home Runs Per Game – Anderson (1.41)
Team Triples Per Game – Carson-Newman (0.48)
Team Doubles Per Game – Carson-Newman (2.15)
Team Stolen Bases Per Game – Carson-Newman (2.46)
Team ERA – Anderson (2.01)
Team Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio – Wingate (4.60)
Batting Average – Emily Harris, Carson-Newman (.494)
On-Base Percentage – Emily Harris, Carson-Newman (.534)
Slugging Percentage – Kayson Boatner, Anderson (1.069)
Home Runs Per Game – Kayson Boatner, Anderson (0.52)
RBIs Per Game – Kayson Boatner, Anderson (1.39)
Runs Scored Per Game – Sara Stroud, Wingate (1.22)
Triples Per Game – Sara Stroud, Wingate (0.13)
Doubles Per Game – Kayson Boatner, Anderson (0.43)
Stolen Bases Per Game – Mya Maddox, Tusculum (0.78)
ERA – Laken Maxwell, Anderson (1.66)
Strikeouts Per Seven Innings – Lauren Rakes, Lenoir-Rhyne (11.1)
Pitching Victories – Laken Maxwell, Anderson (20)