Softball Team Dazzles this Year, Garners Many Awards
The Spalding University Softball team just finished up their best season in recent years posting an overall record of 21-14 and a conference record of 11-5 which was good for 3rd place. Also for the first time, the team advanced to the Small College World Series in Akron, Ohio where they lost in the semi-finals and took home 3rd place.
The season would be a rollercoaster for the young women as twice they went on 4 game losing streaks only to come back with a 5 and 6 game winning streaks respectively. The team earned big wins in matchups vs. Hanover and Centre and found themselves in the hunt for the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship all year.
After being selected as a top 8 finalist in the country, the team traveled to the Small College World Series where they would take on the likes of Penn College, Rochester College, and Judson. The team once again found themselves in the hunt for a national championship when they dropped a heartbreaking extra-inning game to eventual national champions, Rochester College. The team would go on to take 3rd place at the World Series, the third best finish of any sport in the athletic department’s history. Peyton French would go on to be named to the All-Tournament Team.
The successes of the Softball team would not go unnoticed as they young women garnered many post season awards. Starting with the SLIAC All-Conference team, Spalding had 4 women receive awards. First was Tia McIntosh who posted a 10-6 record on the mound with a 2.82 ERA and struck out 102 batters in only 96 innings of work. She also was an offensive threat hitting .304 and leading the team in homeruns with 3. Next was Peyton French who led the team in batting average (.382) and hits (39), and played an important role on defense making only 3 errors all year. Also making the team was senior Sarah Goff who hit .303 on the year and led the team in doubles (9), and RBI’s (26). Rounding out the All-Conference Team was Rena Philpot who posted an 8-4 record on the mound with a 2.91 ERA. Rena also chipped in at the plate hitting .263 and collecting 8 RBI’s.
The awards would not stop there as the USCAA would hand out their All-American awards. First to receive the award was also an All-Conference selection in Rena Philpot. Hannah Stucker was also chosen as an All-American as she hit .337 on the year and collected 32 hits, 10 extra base hits, and team bests 19 walks and 10 stolen bases. The 3rd All-American from Spalding was Amanda Zwicker. Amanda, who started 30 games for the Golden Eagles, hit .333 with 9 doubles and 12 RBI’s. The USCAA would also recognize four players from Spalding who excelled both in the classroom and on the field as they were a part of the All-Academic Team. Those players were Sarah Goff, Katie Phillips, Liz Schooler, and Amanda Zwicker.
Coach Williams has already secured what he believes is a tremendous recruiting class. The bright spot for the program is they only have to say goodbye to two seniors, Amanda Zwicker and Sarah Goff. With the core of the team returning for another season, the future is bright for Spalding Softball.
