(BOWLING GREEN, Ky.) – The Mid-South Conference announced their 2023 Softball All-Conference teams this afternoon and Thomas More had six players honored. This is the most all-conference players the Saints have had since 2019 and their most during their time in the NAIA.
Two players were named to the First Team in graduate student
Maclai Branson (Union, Ky./Ryle/University of Kentucky/Miami University (OH)) and first year
Karys Black (Burlington, Ky./Boone County).
Seniors
Hailey McAdoo (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mercy McAuley) and
Annika Gels (Eaton, Ohio/Eaton) were named on the Second Team, while junior
Delaney Kemper (Williamstown, Ky./Williamstown) and junior
Josie Wefer (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills/Morehead State University) were named Honorable Mentions.
Branson has been dominant this season for the Saints, as she earns her first All MSC honor. She is tied for second in the NAIA with 23 doubles, tied for third with an .898 slugging percentage, and tied for fifth with 13 homeruns. She also leads the NAIA with 42 extra base hits and is tied for the NAIA lead with 132 total bases.
She leads the MSC with 53 RBI and is tied for the conference lead with six triples and 49 runs scored. She is tied for third with 58 hits and is ninth with a .395 batting average. She is second on the Saints with a .442 on-base percentage (OBP). Branson has scored at least one run in 19 straight games.
Black earned her first career all-conference honor. She is second in the conference with 11 homeruns, fourth with 40 RBI and 90 total bases, tied for fourth with 23 extra base hits, tied for sixth with a .652 slugging percentage, tied for eighth with 38 runs scored, and tied for 10th with 12 doubles. She is third on the team with 45 hits and has a .371 OBP.
She has also appeared in six games in the circle for the Saints, making four starts and throwing 16.2 innings. She has thrown one complete game with one win and has four strikeouts.
McAdoo has now been named Second Team all-conference two seasons in a row. She is tied for the conference lead with 49 runs scored, tied for second with a .515 OBP, third with 26 walks, tied for third with 58 hits, and is fourth with a .423 batting average. She has at least one hit in 35 of 42 games this season.
This is Gels first all-conference appearance after a solid season in the circle as the Saints top pitcher. She is fifth in the conference with 95 strikeouts, tied for fifth with two saves, sixth with a 2.52 earned run average (ERA), tied for sixth with nine complete games, seventh with 102.2 innings pitched, and tied for ninth with 10 wins. Gels has thrown a one-hit complete game shutout in her last three starts.
Kemper earns her first all-conference honor for the Saints. She leads the conference with 12 hit by pitches, is third with 10 homeruns, and tied for seventh with 34 RBI. She is third on the team with a .582 slugging percentage, .421 OBP, and 71 total bases.
Wefer is named all-conference for the first time in her Saints career. She is tied for ninth in the conference with 33 RBI. She is tied for third on the team with nine doubles, has three homeruns, 41 hits, and a .360 batting average for Thomas More.
The Saints have won their most games since 2019 this season, with 25, and will play in the opening round of the MSC Tournament in Bowling Green tonight at 7:30 p.m. against Shawnee State University. They won three of four games against the Bears earlier this season.
