Wilbur and Govan Headline Softball All-Conference Honors as Pitcher and Hitter of the Year
5/10/2021 12:05:00 PM | Softball
Southland All-Conference Teams release
FRISCO, Texas -- Junior Kassidy Wilbur has been named the 2021 Southland Conference Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year, according to a release from the Southland Conference on Monday as part of its softball all-conference teams release. Wilbur was joined in receiving superlative honors by redshirt freshman Shaylon Govan, who was named the league's Hitter of the Year in the same release. Monday's release marks the first time in program history that the league's Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year and Hitter of the Year have all been Ladyjack athletes. It also marks the second Player of the Year honor, fifth Hitter of the Year and third Pitcher of the Year accolade in program history.
In addition to Wilbur and Govan, five other Ladyjacks were recognized as part of the Southland All-Conference Teams. Bryana Novegil (2B) joined Wilbur and Govan on the First Team, making the second All-Conference appearance of her career, while Mackenzie Bennett (DP) was also named a First Team selection. Gaby Garcia (UTL) and Camryn Middlebrook (SS) were chosen as Second Team honorees for their first league nod, while Alex Hedspeth (3B) was selected to the Third Team.
Wilbur left no doubt in the minds of the voters by putting forth a stellar 2021 regular season that has personally etcher her name in the SFA record books and put her on track to own several other records when all is said and done. The right-hander from Bridge City, Texas has posted a 29-4 record across 40 appearances (31 starts), with 21 complete game efforts and 13 shutouts. Her 0.86 ERA, 212.2 innings pitched, 253 strikeouts and .171 average for opponents are all conference-best marks, while she ranks first in wins (29), second in shutouts (12) and sixth in strikeouts (253) on the national scale. She was a four-time Southland Conference Pitcher of the Week selection and set the program's single-season record for pitching wins with her 29th victory over the weekend.
A history maker by her own right, Govan cut a swathe of destruction through opposing pitchers all season and continued that streak through conference play. The Katy, Texas native hit .397 on the season on the way to 52 hits, including 23 for extra bases. Her marks of 15 home runs, 51 runs batted in, slugging percentage of .802, on-base-percentage of .515 and base on balls (29) were all league-best totals. She scored 36 runs and struck out just 12 times in 131 plate appearances on the season, while recording 18 multi-hit games and 13 multi-RBI games. With her 15th home run against Sam Houston, Govan broke current volunteer assistant coach Margarita Corona's single-season record of 14 home runs, and she is on pace to threaten the program mark for a career as well.
A senior leader and everyday starter for the 'Jacks in the middle infield, Bryana Novegil earns her second All-Conference accolade by virtue of a campaign in which she batted .324 and accrued 45 hits, 31 runs scored and 16 runs batted in. She posted 12 multi-hit games, a 10-game hitting streak and a 19-game on-base streak during the course of the season. She also recorded 67 putouts and 42 assists against just one error, owning a .991 fielding percentage.
Mackenzie Bennett earns her first All-Conference nod after a season in which she posted a .340 average with 34 hits (12 XBH's). She slugged .520 on the season and drove in 25 runs thanks in large part to nine doubles and three home runs. She posted eight multi-hit games and seven multi-RBI games on the year.
A breakout campaign by Gaby Garcia led to the C/OF being named a Second Team All-Conference player in the utility slot. The Southlake native finished second on the team in batting average (.390), runs (33), home runs (8) and RBI (38), but led SFA in total hits (57) and doubles (12), while slugging .637 on the year. A pure hitter, Garcia put together SFA's longest hitting streak of the season (19 games), and ranked just behind Govan in multi-hit games (17) and multi-RBI games (11), while posting two games with five or more runs batted in.
A stud both on offense and defensively at shortstop, Camryn Middlebrook earns a well-deserved recognition as a Second Teamer after posting a .319 average and playing great defense all season long. She notched 38 hits (14 XBH), scored 31 runs, drove in another 21 and ranked third on the team in home runs with six big flies. She posted a .961 fielding percentage at shortstop out of 128 chances, but made numerous athletic plays to deny opposing batters hits and save runs.
Rounding out the SFA honorees was Alex Hedspeth, a Lockhart native who earns Third Team recognition at the hot corner. Hedspeth posed a 2.76 average on the year to go along with 27 hits, 22 runs scored and 17 batted in. She hit four doubles and three home runs to slug .408, and posted a stellar on-base percentage of .415. Hedspeth's OBP was buoyed by her uncanny knack for being hit by pitch, which occurred a total of 19 times during the regular season, a total that ranks third nationally.
The Southland All-Conference teams were nominated by the league's sports information directors in tandem with the head coaches and were voted on by the coaches, with voting for one's own players prohibited.
FRISCO, Texas -- Junior Kassidy Wilbur has been named the 2021 Southland Conference Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year, according to a release from the Southland Conference on Monday as part of its softball all-conference teams release. Wilbur was joined in receiving superlative honors by redshirt freshman Shaylon Govan, who was named the league's Hitter of the Year in the same release. Monday's release marks the first time in program history that the league's Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year and Hitter of the Year have all been Ladyjack athletes. It also marks the second Player of the Year honor, fifth Hitter of the Year and third Pitcher of the Year accolade in program history.
In addition to Wilbur and Govan, five other Ladyjacks were recognized as part of the Southland All-Conference Teams. Bryana Novegil (2B) joined Wilbur and Govan on the First Team, making the second All-Conference appearance of her career, while Mackenzie Bennett (DP) was also named a First Team selection. Gaby Garcia (UTL) and Camryn Middlebrook (SS) were chosen as Second Team honorees for their first league nod, while Alex Hedspeth (3B) was selected to the Third Team.
Wilbur left no doubt in the minds of the voters by putting forth a stellar 2021 regular season that has personally etcher her name in the SFA record books and put her on track to own several other records when all is said and done. The right-hander from Bridge City, Texas has posted a 29-4 record across 40 appearances (31 starts), with 21 complete game efforts and 13 shutouts. Her 0.86 ERA, 212.2 innings pitched, 253 strikeouts and .171 average for opponents are all conference-best marks, while she ranks first in wins (29), second in shutouts (12) and sixth in strikeouts (253) on the national scale. She was a four-time Southland Conference Pitcher of the Week selection and set the program's single-season record for pitching wins with her 29th victory over the weekend.
A history maker by her own right, Govan cut a swathe of destruction through opposing pitchers all season and continued that streak through conference play. The Katy, Texas native hit .397 on the season on the way to 52 hits, including 23 for extra bases. Her marks of 15 home runs, 51 runs batted in, slugging percentage of .802, on-base-percentage of .515 and base on balls (29) were all league-best totals. She scored 36 runs and struck out just 12 times in 131 plate appearances on the season, while recording 18 multi-hit games and 13 multi-RBI games. With her 15th home run against Sam Houston, Govan broke current volunteer assistant coach Margarita Corona's single-season record of 14 home runs, and she is on pace to threaten the program mark for a career as well.
A senior leader and everyday starter for the 'Jacks in the middle infield, Bryana Novegil earns her second All-Conference accolade by virtue of a campaign in which she batted .324 and accrued 45 hits, 31 runs scored and 16 runs batted in. She posted 12 multi-hit games, a 10-game hitting streak and a 19-game on-base streak during the course of the season. She also recorded 67 putouts and 42 assists against just one error, owning a .991 fielding percentage.
Mackenzie Bennett earns her first All-Conference nod after a season in which she posted a .340 average with 34 hits (12 XBH's). She slugged .520 on the season and drove in 25 runs thanks in large part to nine doubles and three home runs. She posted eight multi-hit games and seven multi-RBI games on the year.
A breakout campaign by Gaby Garcia led to the C/OF being named a Second Team All-Conference player in the utility slot. The Southlake native finished second on the team in batting average (.390), runs (33), home runs (8) and RBI (38), but led SFA in total hits (57) and doubles (12), while slugging .637 on the year. A pure hitter, Garcia put together SFA's longest hitting streak of the season (19 games), and ranked just behind Govan in multi-hit games (17) and multi-RBI games (11), while posting two games with five or more runs batted in.
A stud both on offense and defensively at shortstop, Camryn Middlebrook earns a well-deserved recognition as a Second Teamer after posting a .319 average and playing great defense all season long. She notched 38 hits (14 XBH), scored 31 runs, drove in another 21 and ranked third on the team in home runs with six big flies. She posted a .961 fielding percentage at shortstop out of 128 chances, but made numerous athletic plays to deny opposing batters hits and save runs.
Rounding out the SFA honorees was Alex Hedspeth, a Lockhart native who earns Third Team recognition at the hot corner. Hedspeth posed a 2.76 average on the year to go along with 27 hits, 22 runs scored and 17 batted in. She hit four doubles and three home runs to slug .408, and posted a stellar on-base percentage of .415. Hedspeth's OBP was buoyed by her uncanny knack for being hit by pitch, which occurred a total of 19 times during the regular season, a total that ranks third nationally.
The Southland All-Conference teams were nominated by the league's sports information directors in tandem with the head coaches and were voted on by the coaches, with voting for one's own players prohibited.
Players Mentioned
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