Five Bears Recognized as All-SoCon Performers

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Mercer softball team saw five players earn postseason awards from the Southern Conference when the league announced its 2021 awards and all-conference teams on Wednesday afternoon.

Redshirt senior Danielle Castleberry and senior Micayla Rood led the way by landing on the All-SoCon First Team, while sophomore Ashlyn Donner and senior Allie Jones garnered second team accolades. Rookie Annie Potter earned a spot on the SoCon All-Freshman Team in her first collegiate season with the Bears.

Castleberry collected her second-consecutive All-SoCon First Team selection, having also received the award in 2019. The Ellenwood, Ga., native has once again been among the top hitters in the Southern Conference, ranking fourth in hit by pitches (9), sixth in hits (45), seventh in doubles (9), eighth in batting average (.341) and ninth in RBI (26). She has also been one of the toughest players to strike out in all of Division I, ranking 49th nationally and second in the SoCon with just six strikeouts in 132 at-bats. The fifth-year Bear has put together one of her most complete seasons in a Mercer uniform, setting a single-season personal best nine doubles while posting her second-most hits, home runs (3), RBI, hit-by-pitches and at-bats (132). One of Castleberry's most memorable performances of the 2021 season came on April 23 when she documented her first collegiate multi-home run game with two long balls and four RBI in the squad's 8-3 series-opening win at ETSU.

Rood earned her fifth postseason honor from the SoCon after being named the 2018 Freshman of the Year and garnering first team and all-freshman team accolades. She later added a spot on the 2019 All-SoCon Second Team. The Buford, Ga., native has continued her torrid pace offensively after last season's hiatus from the diamond as she leads the Bears and ranks fourth in the conference in batting average (.355) and fifth in runs scored (29) while posting the second-most hits (44), multi-hit games (13) and stolen bases (15) on the squad. Rood has been at the top of her game as a senior, recording single season personal bests in batting average and on base percentage (.421) while notching her second-most runs scored, stolen bases, walks (14) and RBI (11).

Donner quickly established herself as one of the top pitchers in the SoCon as she earned second team honors in her first season with the Bears. The New Ulm, Minn., native compiled an 8-6 record in 23 appearances, ranking fourth in the conference in wins. She posted a 3.58 ERA and threw a team-high 107.2 innings while notching 10 complete games as one of just five pitchers in the conference with double-digit complete games. The Chipola College product came into form at the start of the Southern Conference slate as she started league play by winning five of her first six starts with complete game efforts in each contest. Donner's most impressive performance in the circle came in the series finale against Western Carolina, who entered the matchup on a nine-game conference winning streak, by shutting out the Catamounts in a 6-0 victory.

Jones garnered her second postseason award from the SoCon after being named to the All-Freshman Team in 2018. The Calhoun, Ga., native continues to be one of the premier base stealers in both the NCAA and the SoCon as her 19 swipes lead the conference and rank 58th nationally. A .304 hitter (41-for-135), Jones is tied for the team lead with three home runs, 60 total bases and six multi-RBI games. She has caught fire since the start of conference play, slashing .358/.397/.585 while going 19-for-53 at the plate with three doubles, three home runs, 13 runs scored and 11 RBI. Jones' bat has been red hot as of late as she enters the SoCon Tournament with a team-best nine-game hitting streak and has reached base safely in each of the last 16 games. Over that stretch, she has tallied 22 hits, including six extra-base hits with three doubles and three dingers, in addition to scoring 14 runs and driving in 11 more.

Potter burst onto the scene in 2021 and remained one of Mercer's most consistent performers as a rookie, earning her a spot on the SoCon All-Freshman Team. The Largo, Fla., native has started 43 of the Bears' 44 games in 2021, hitting .288 (30-for-104) with seven doubles, one triple, one home run, 14 runs scored and driving in 18 RBI. She has also drawn nine walks and is 6-of-8 on stolen base attempts while giving herself up with a sacrifice bunt on seven occasions. The first-year infielder has experienced a great deal of success in her first season in the SoCon with the second-best batting average on the team against conference opponents at .371 (13-for-35). Potter has displayed her offensive balance of consistency and power in a pair of three-hit games this season. Her first such game came on March 7 against UAB at Gerogia's Bulldog Classic when she slugged her first collegiate home run in a 3-for-4 outing at the plate with a season-high three RBI. The Seminole High School product had a similarly impressive showing in the Bears' 6-1 win at Samford on March 26 when she finished the game a perfect 3-for-3 with a triple and three more RBI.

The fourth-seeded Bears will begin the 2021 Southern Conference Tournament on Thursday at top-seeded UNCG with first pitch slated for 12:30 p.m. All games for the SoCon Tournament will be streamed on ESPN+ this weekend.

2021 SoCon Softball Awards and All-Conference Teams
Player of the Year: Bailey Huneycutt, Western Carolina, Jr., SS
Pitcher of the Year: Morgan Scott, UNCG, So.
Freshman of the Year: Morgan Scott, UNCG, P
Coach of the Year: Jim Clift, Western Carolina

All-SoCon First Team
P    – Morgan Scott, UNCG, So.
P    –   Jayme Eilers, Western Carolina, So.
C    –   Kailey McNeil, Western Carolina, Sr.
INF –   Mackense Greico, Furman, R-So.
INF – Danielle Castleberry, Mercer, Sr.
INF –   Whitney Hinton, Samford, Sr.
INF –   Bailey Huneycutt, Western Carolina, Jr.
OF –   Micayla Rood, Mercer, Sr.
OF –   Makenna Matthijs, UNCG, Sr.
OF –   Hayleigh Weissenbach, Chattanooga, Gr.
DP –   Kayleigh Willis, UNCG, R-Sr.

All-SoCon Second Team
P    –   Kelly Schmidt, ETSU, R-Sr.
P    –   Ashlyn Donner, Mercer, So.
C    –   Kylie Toler, ETSU, R-Sr.
INF –   Maycin Brown, UNCG, So.
INF –   Jasmine Palmer, UNCG, R-Sr.
INF –   Timberlyn Shurbutt, Samford, Sr.
INF –   Emily Coltharp, Chattanooga, Jr.
OF –   Allie Jones, Mercer, Sr.
OF –   Amanda Briskin, Samford, Jr.
OF –   Ryan Brzozoski, Samford, Jr.
DP –   Riley Ludlam, Furman, So.

All-Freshman Team
Lilly Holston, ETSU
Claire Ginder, Furman
Annie Potter, Mercer
Maycin Brown, UNCG
Morgan Scott, UNCG
Grace Robertson, Samford
Courtney Ball, Chattanooga
Jayme Eilers, Western Carolina
Savannah Rice, Western Carolina
Jeralynn Wells, Western Carolina

* Student-athletes that would have been eligible for all-freshman and freshman of the year consideration last year before the season was curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic are eligible to be considered for this season's all-freshman and freshman of the year awards.

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Five Bears Recognized as All-SoCon Performers

Players Mentioned

Danielle Castleberry

Ashlyn Donner

Allie Jones

Annie Potter

Micayla Rood

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