Lipscomb’s Kelly, Van Treeck earn TSWA weekly honors

April 12, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lipscomb’s Austin Kelly and Logan Van Treeck were named the baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from April 3-9.

Kelly batted .500 (9-for-18) with four home runs, 12 RBIs and nine runs scored in four wins for the Bisons. The Leland, Miss., native was 4-for-5 with four RBIs and four runs scored, including a pair of homers, in a 12-7 victory against 18th-ranked Louisville.

He belted a solo homer and added a sacrifice fly while scoring twice in the second of a three-game series at North Alabama and finished the weekend with three hits, six RBIs and three runs scored in the series finale, posting a two-run double, an RBI single and a three-run homer. Kelly is hitting .313 with 13 home runs, 34 RBIs and 24 runs scored in 28 games this season.

Van Treeck tossed seven innings in the series opener at North Alabama, allowing just three hits one unearned run while striking out 12 in a 7-2 victory. The Lincoln, Neb., native retired the side in order in the first, second and fifth innings and worked around one baserunner in the third, fourth and sixth innings.

The junior lefthander allowed a leadoff double and an error setup UNA to plate its only run against Van Treeck in the seventh inning. He improved to 3-3 this season with a 3.00 ERA in nine appearances (two starts) covering 36.0 innings, giving up 28 hits with just three walks and 47 strikeouts. Opponents are batting .209 against him.

2022-23 TSWA BASEBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
February 21 – Jack Roode, University of the South (Player); Jaden Hamm, Middle Tennessee (Pitcher)
February 28 – Jared Dickey, Tennessee (Player); Chase Burns, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 7 – Blake Burke, Tennessee (Player); Chase Dollander, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 14 – Cole Turney, Cumberland University (Player); Jaden Hamm, Middle Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 21 – Gabe Jennings, Middle Tennessee (Player); Hunter Owen, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
March 28 – Parker Noland, Vanderbilt (Player); Noah Thompson, Lipscomb (Pitcher)
April 4 – Eston Snider, Middle Tennessee (Player); Devin Futrell, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)

Lincoln Memorial’s Henry, Trevecca’s Sensing garner TSWA weekly accolades

April 4, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lincoln Memorial’s McKenzie Henry and Trevecca University’s Ashlan Sensing garnered softball Player and Pitcher of the Week accolades, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from March 27-April 2.

Henry batted .462 (6-for-13) with two home runs, five RBIs and three runs scored in four games for the Railsplitters. The Louisville, Tenn., native was 0-for-1 with a walk in the first of two games against Carson-Newman but posted three hits, three RBIs and two runs scored in the second outing versus the Eagles, including a two-run homer in the first inning and an RBI single in extra innings.

She belted a solo homer in the sixth inning in the first of two games at Coker University and collected two hits with an RBI single in the second meeting versus the Cobras. Henry is hitting .415 with 10 doubles, six home runs, 37 RBIs and 26 runs scored in 42 games this season.

Sensing posted a 2-0 mark with a 0.50 ERA in two complete games with one shutout, allowing just nine hits with 12 strikeouts for the Trojans. The Dickson, Tenn., native gave up four hits, no walks and struck out eight in a 7-1 victory against Northwood University, retiring the side in order in the first, second and fifth innings.

She followed that with a five-hit shutout against Ashland University, striking out four and giving up no walks, setting down the side in order in three innings and allowing just one baserunner past first. Sensing upped her record this year to 10-4 with a 1.11 ERA in 18 appearances over 95.0 innings. The righthander has given up 67 hits with eight walks and 98 strikeouts, with opponents batting .194 against her.

2022-23 TSWA SOFTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
February 21 – Macey Neal, Union University (Player)
February 28 – Chloe Kleischmidt, Tusculum University (Player); Rylee Gattis, Carson-Newman (Pitcher)
March 7 – Acelynn Sellers, Chattanooga (Player); Alyssa Lavdis, Chattanooga (Pitcher)
March 14 – Macauley Bailey, Carson-Newman (Player); Ashlan Sensing, Trevecca Nazarene (Pitcher)
March 21 – Macauley Bailey, Carson-Newman (Player); Caitlyn Manus, Tennessee State (Pitcher)
March 28 – Kendall Andrews, Trevecca Nazarene (Player); Savana Luper, King University (Pitcher)

Middle Tennessee’s Snider, Vanderbilt’s Futrell earn TSWA weekly honors

April 4, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee’s Eston Snider and Vanderbilt’s Devin Futrell were named the baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from March 27-April 2.

Snider batted .700 (7-for-10) in three games for the Blue Raiders with two extra-base hits, six RBIs and seven runs scored as well as three stolen bases. The Franklin, Tenn., native posted two hits with an RBI single and a solo homer as well as four runs scored (reach base via hit by pitch twice) in the second of three games against Florida International.

He ended the three-game series with a 5-for-5 effort with four RBIs and three runs scored, including a two-run single in the fifth, an RBI single in the seventh and another RBI single in a five-run bottom of the ninth in a 13-12 victory. Snider is hitting .286 with six doubles, three home runs, 14 RBIs and 24 runs scored in 24 games this season.

Futrell tossed eight shutout innings in the series finale against Georgia, allowing just three hits. The Pembroke Pines, Fla., native did not walk a batter and struck out seven in a 4-0 victory, giving the Commodores a 9-0 mark in SEC play after three weekends of league action.

The sophomore lefthander retired the side in order in the first, second, fourth, sixth and seventh innings and only one baserunner reached second, a one-out double in the fifth. Futrell improved to 5-1 this season with a 2.70 ERA in seven appearances covering 33.1 innings, giving up just 20 hits with nine walks and 27 strikeouts. Opponents are batting just .172 against him.

Vanderbilt’s Noland, Lipscomb’s Thompson earn TSWA weekly honors

March 28, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt’s Parker Noland and Lipscomb’s Noah Thompson were named the baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from March 20-26.

Noland batted .533 (8-for-15) with three home runs, 14 RBIs and six runs scored in a three-game series at Mississippi State. The Knoxville, Tenn., native posted a 5-for-6 effort in the series opener with three runs scored and 11 RBIs, including grand slams in the sixth and seventh innings, becoming the fifth player in SEC history to hit two grand slams in a single game. He added a two-run single in the third inning and an RBI single in the fourth, registering a school single-game record for RBIs in the contest.

The senior collected two hits with two RBIs and three runs scored in the second game against the Bulldogs, including a solo homer in the fourth and an RBI groundout in a nine-run ninth inning for VU. In the series finale he recorded an RBI single in the third inning.

Noland is batting .290 with four doubles, five homers, 24 RBIs and 13 runs scored in 23 games this season.

Thompson tossed a one-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts in the series-clinching victory at Queens University on Sunday for the Bisons despite an almost two-hour delay before the contest.

The graduate student from Louisville, Ky., retired the first 10 batters of the game before an error gave the Royals their first baserunner. The lefthander worked around a hit by pitch and a walk in the fifth and retired the side in order in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings before a single with two outs in the ninth broke up the no-hitter.

Thompson has tossed 29.2 innings this season with an era of 0.91, best in the Atlantic Sun, posting a 4-1 record and giving up just 12 hits in seven appearances with 31 strikeouts. He has not allowed a run in his last 23 innings on the mound.

Trevecca’s Andrews, King’s Luper garner TSWA weekly accolades

March 28, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Trevecca University’s Kendall Andrews and King University’s Savana Luper garnered softball Player and Pitcher of the Week accolades, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from March 20-26.

Andrews batted .417 (5-for-12) with a triple, three home runs, seven RBIs and four runs scored in four victories for the Trojans.

The Murfreesboro, Tenn., native walked and scored in the first of two games against Walsh University and was 3-for-4 with two runs and three RBIs in the second meeting with the Cavaliers, including a two-run homer in the first inning and a solo shot in the fourth.

She belted a solo homer in the third inning in the first of two games at Malone University and added a bases-clearing triple in the fifth in the second contest against the Pioneers. Andrews is hitting .449 with six triples, six homers, 27 RBIs and 23 runs scored in 26 games this season, leading the Great Midwest Athletic Conference in RBIs, triples, slugging percentage (.928) and on-base percentage (.571).

Luper posted a 2-0 mark with a 0.54 ERA in two outings for the Tornado, striking out 14 and allowing just five hits.

The Salem, Va., native tossed a complete game against Southern Wesleyan, recording nine strikeouts and one walk while allowing no earned runs, overcoming four errors by the Tornado. The freshman tossed six innings in a win versus Belmont-Abbey, giving up one run on two hits with one walk and five strikeouts.

Luper has posted a 9-1 record with a 2.04 ERA in 15 appearances covering 61.2 innings this season, allowing 53 hits and just 18 earned runs with 56 strikeouts. Opponents are batting only .221 against her.