CONWAY, Ark. – The Atlantic Sun Conference announced its softball postseason awards Wednesday morning, and the Central Arkansas softball team earned a plethora of spots across the league's various teams. In all, 11 awards were given to the Bears, with nine all-conference spots and two league superlatives.
One of the superlatives is a familiar one for the Bears;
Madi Young was named the ASUN Defensive Player of the Year, her second and the team's third-consecutive defensive honor. Young also won the award in 2023, and this year, added a Second Team All-ASUN nod to it. She batted .294 with 48 hits, 18 of them for extra bases. The Derby, Kansas native ranked third in the ASUN with 14 doubles, and was top-15 with 35 RBI. She was also tied for sixth in the ASUN with 30 walks, striking out only seven times in 199 plate appearances. Defensively, Young was one of three players to record 100 putouts and 100 assists this season. She also turned 21 double-plays, more than nine teams in the ASUN this season, and second among all ASUN players, trailing only her first baseman. She had season-highs of seven putouts (2x), nine assists, and two games of ten-plus chances with zero errors.
"I think everybody understands what Madi brings to our team, obviously on the defensive side of the ball, but also offensively and in terms of leadership. The way she impacts the game for us goes beyond the box score, even though the box score is usually pretty great for her." – Head coach
Jenny Parsons
The other superlative went along with a First Team All-ASUN spot for
Addie Graham, who was named the ASUN Freshman of the Year, a First Team All-ASUN outfielder, and was given a spot on the ASUN All-Freshman Team. Graham stormed out of the gates in her first collegiate season, earning a name for herself as a consistent bat and a cannon at center field. She had the fourth-most hits (68) on the seventh-best batting average in the ASUN (.389), including 12 doubles and three home runs. Her 12 doubles ranked seventh in the ASUN, and she was ninth with an OB% of .449. Graham had 19 games of multiple hits, a 10-game hitting streak and nine games of multiple RBI. She had 96 putouts and nine assists from center field.
"Addie played really well for us as a freshman, and this is not a league where a lot of players can step in and have the type of season she had. She adjusted quickly to the speed of the game, and the sky is the limit for her moving forward." – Head coach Parsons
The Bears' other First Team All-ASUN spot went to
Kylie Griffin, who earns her third such award. An All-ASUN player for four years, Griffin earned an all-freshman nod her first season, and now has three-straight First Team All-ASUN honors to close her career. Griffin led the ASUN and ranked in the top-25 in the nation in total hits during the regular season (72), and finished the year third in the ASUN in triples (5), and had the eighth-best batting average among all ASUN hitters (.385). She had 22 games of multiple hits, including seven games of three or more hits. Her .987 fielding percentage was the second-best among players with 90 or more assists.
"I mean, what else is there to say about Kylie. Day in and day out, she always brings a great attitude and energy, and she's been such a consistent player for us. The things she can do on the field, there aren't a lot of third basemen that have her reaction time and her ability to get on base. To be able to do both at that level is special." – Head coach Parsons
Central Arkansas had three Third Team All-ASUN awards, one of which went to
Bailie Runner. She finished the regular season with 11 wins, two of which were shutouts. She threw 13 complete games and logged 157.2 innings, both of which were top-five numbers in the conference. In ASUN games, she held a 3.16 ERA and won seven games, the fifth-most in the league. Her nine complete games were tied for the most, and she was second in the ASUN with 79.2 innings of work. She was also one of just seven pitchers in the ASUN to log a solo shutout in conference.
"Bailie flipped a switch for us this year, and got better as the year went on. She kept us in a lot of games, and helped us down the stretch as we got closer to the tournament. Especially in conference games, she took her game to another level when we needed her to most." – Head coach Parsons
Lilly Hood also earned a Third Team All-ASUN selection, after playing three positions for the Bears this season, logging time at designated player, second base and left field. She hit .293 on the year with 48 hits, of which there were nine doubles, three triples and a home run. She was second on the Bears with 34 RBI, a top-15 mark in the ASUN. She had ten games of multiple hits and a team-high 11 games with multiple RBI. In ASUN games, she collected 19 hits, with five for extra bases. She had 15 RBI and scored 14 times.
"Lilly worked extremely hard to become the player she is now, and she became one of our most consistent hitters this year. She stepped up in some big spots for us, and the fact that she's able to slide in at second base and left field shows the type of player she is, really a team-first player." – Head coach Parsons
Kaitlyn Graham, the Bear's third Third Team All-ASUN honoree, stepped onto a team that had just graduated an excellent first baseman, and filled in very well for her first season in Purple and Gray, opening her career with an under-rated season that also garnered a spot on the ASUN All-Freshman Team. Graham finished third on the Bears with a batting average of .308, putting down 48 hits, including 11 doubles and three home runs. Her 11 doubles were tied for ninth in the ASUN, and her 31 RBI were good for 21st. She drew 26 walks as a freshman, the ninth-most among all ASUN hitters, and had the second-highest fielding percentage and number of putouts. She led the conference in double-plays turned with 24, more than ten ASUN teams this season.
"Kaitlyn was steady for us all year, which is incredibly important for a first baseman. She was consistent as they come at the plate, and was a vacuum at first base. I thought she showed great composure as a freshman, and she's going to be very good for us moving forward." – Head coach Parsons
