All-SoCon softball teams announced

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Chattanooga utility player Olivia Lipari has been named the Southern Conference Player of the Year and Mocs right-hander Peja Goold has been named the SoCon Pitcher of the Year in voting of the league’s eight head coaches. UNCG infielder Macy Michael was voted the SoCon Freshmen of the Year and Chattanooga’s Frank Reed was recognized by his peers as the league’s coach of the year.

The coaches also named All-SoCon first and second teams and an all-freshman team. Due to a tie in the voting, an extra catcher is on the first team.

Lipari is in the top five in the league in six offensive categories. The Oviedo, Florida, native finished the season leading the Mocs in batting average (.375), hits (54), RBIs (39) and walks (33). Lipari led Chattanooga to its second straight 30-win season and No. 1 seed in the SoCon Softball Championship presented by One Spartanburg this week. The senior, who played and started all 52 games for the Mocs, completed the regular season with 15 multi-hit games and two or more RBIs in a game on 11 occasions. Lipari is Chattanooga’s sixth SoCon Player of the Year and the first since SoCon Hall of Famer Michelle Fuzzard won the honor in 2012.

Goold amassed 23 wins with a 1.50 ERA, striking out 224 batters in 177.1 innings pitched over 34 appearances (26 starts) this season. The sophomore’s 224 strikeouts were more than four SoCon teams had during the regular season. Goold, who was the SoCon Preseason Pitcher of the Year, threw 20 complete games, nine of which came in conference contests, and was named the conference’s pitcher of the week on March 10 and April 21. The native of Stockton, California, won SoCon Pitcher of the Year for the second straight season, marking the 12th time a Chattanooga pitcher received the award.

Michael played in 49 games with 26 starts for UNCG, finishing the season with a .347 batting average, nine home runs and 34 RBIs. The Newton, North Carolina, product had two or more hits in eight games, including a four-hit outing on May 3, which included a grand slam against Western Carolina. Michael becomes UNCG’s fourth recipient of the award, with the last coming in 2021 when Morgan Scott took home the honor for the Spartans.

Reed earned SoCon Coach of the Year for the seventh time, marking his first win since the 2015 season. Reed’s win is the 10th occasion a Mocs head coach has won the honor. In his 24th season at the helm, Reed led Chattanooga to a 39-13 overall record and 15-5 mark in SoCon games. The Mocs won the SoCon’s regular season crown for the second straight season and will be the conference tournament’s No. 1 seed. Chattanooga leads the SoCon in triples (15), strikeouts thrown (406) and shutouts (14).

UNCG and Samford led the league with five all-conference selections apiece. The Spartans had four first-team selections as catcher Betsy Eatmon, outfielders Kaylyn Belfield and Grace Loftin and utility/pitcher Jorde Chartrand made the squad. The Bulldogs’ Olivia Shaw made the first team as a designated player and an infielder. Mercer, Chattanooga and Wofford each had two selections on the first team. The Bears were represented by infielder Tori Hedgecock and outfielder Hallie Langford, the Mocs saw Goold and Lipari make the squad, and the Terriers placed pitcher Margaret Axelson and catcher Hope Ingle on the first team. Western Carolina’s Lily Bell rounded out the first team.

Samford had three selections on the second team as infielders Grier Bruce and Sarah Squillace, along with outfielder McKayla Cothran made the squad. ETSU, Furman and Chattanooga all had two make the second team. The Bucs were represented by infielder Cameron Young and utility/pitcher Sara Muir. The Paladins placed outfielder Caitlin Goldwait and designated player Sylvia Burroughs on the squad, and for the Mocs, pitcher Taylor Long and outfielder Camryn Cernuto made the team. Mercer catcher Sietske Drijvers, Wofford pitcher Abby Greenwod and Michael completed the second team picks.

Michael was also on the all-freshman team. She was joined by her teammate Hadley Gardner, Mercer’s Hannah Rivers and Grace Jones, Samford’s Joi Hubbard and Ella Nelson, Chattanooga’s Lexi Cooley, and Wofford’s Natalya Salo, Rivers Sampson and Brianna Stanley.

The Southern Conference Softball Championship presented by One Spartanburg gets underway on Wednesday at Hope Field in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The tournament runs through Saturday, with each game slated to be broadcast live on ESPN+.
 
Player of the Year

Olivia Lipari, Sr., UTL, Chattanooga

Pitcher of the Year

Peja Goold, Jr., RHP, Chattanooga

Freshman of the Year

Macy Michael, INF, UNCG

Coach of the Year

Frank Reed, Chattanooga

First Team

P – Peja Goold, Jr., Chattanooga

P – Margaret Axelson, Jr., Wofford

C – Betsy Eatmon, So., UNCG

C – Hope Ingle, Sr., Wofford

INF – Tori Hedgecock, Sr., Mercer

INF – Olivia Shaw, So., Samford

INF – Olivia Lipari, Sr., Chattanooga

INF – Lily Bell, So., Western Carolina

OF – Hallie Langford, R-Sr., Mercer

OF – Kaylyn Belfield, Jr., UNCG

OF – Grace Loftin, Sr., UNCG

DP or UT/Non-P – Olivia Shaw, So., Samford

UT/P – Jorde Chartrand, Sr., UNCG

Second Team

P – Taylor Long, Jr., Chattanooga

P – Abby Greenwood, So., Wofford

C – Sietske Drijvers, Jr., Mercer

INF – Cameron Young, Sr., ETSU

INF – Macy Michael, Fr., UNCG

INF – Grier Bruce, Sr., Samford

INF – Sarah Squillace, Sr., Samford

OF – Caitlin Goldwait, Sr., Furman

OF – McKayla Cothran, Sr., Samford

OF – Camryn Cernuto, Sr., Chattanooga

DP or UT/Non-P – Sylvia Burroughs, Jr., Furman

UT/P – Sara Muir, Sr., ETSU

All-Freshman

Hannah Rivers, INF, Mercer

Grace Jones, P/INF, Mercer

Hadley Gardner, INF/OF, UNCG

Macy Michael, INF, UNCG

Joi Hubbard, UTL, Samford

Ella Nelson, INF, Samford

Lexi Cooley, UTL, Chattanooga

Natalya Salo, P, Wofford

Rivers Sampson, OF, Wofford

Brianna Stanley, INF, Wofford