ORLANDO – Carson-Newman softball has played five student-athletes on the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team, the CSC announced Wednesday.
Mary Vandergriff (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.), NicKolette Ferguson (Erwin, Tenn.) and Brooke Matyasvosky (Orange, Conn.) were all recognized for the second time with the award in their C-N careers, while Macey Hughes (Corryton, Tenn.) and Macauley Bailey (Cross Plains, Tenn.) picked up recognition for the first time in their careers.
Hughes adds the honor to a lengthy set of postseason accolades. It comes on the heels of her earning All-America honors from the D2CCA.
A three-time all-region honoree, Hughes was epic at the plate since moving to the leadoff spot in the lineup. Her .438 batting average was the third-highest in the SAC for the regular season. She finished the year hitting .429. Hughes smashed 66 hits, 20 doubles, a triple and four home runs while driving in 32. Her 20 two-base hits are tied for the most in a season in school history. She scored the seventh-most runs in school history with 57 this year. Her .529 on-base percentage is the 10th-highest for a single-season.
Hughes produced 20 multi-hit games this year, including a 5-for-5 day at the plate where she tied four other Eagles for the single-game record for hits, which she accomplished against Milligan on April 16. Hughes was also top five all-time in RBI for a career with 167. She is tied with Sara Kelley and her 167 for third-most all-time.
Hughes earned a fourth consecutive All-SAC honor and her second straight first-team recognition as a utility player. Hughes is the seventh player in program history to earn an all-league honor from the SAC four times.
Matyasovsky was incredible for C-N at third base. She hit .342 with eight doubles and 14 home runs with 36 runs batted in. Potentially more impressive was her career-long 28-game streak playing error free at the hot corner. Matyasovsky has a .964 fielding percentage and only four errors at third this season.
Matyasovsky's 14 home runs are tied for the fourth-most in a single season in school history. She drove in a career-best six runs against Wheeling on March 10. That game against the Cardinals was one of three this year where she hit two home runs (Coker on March 5 and Southern Wesleyan and March 7) are the others. She has 10 multi-RBI efforts this year and 12 multi-hit days.
Bailey earned a second straight All-SAC honor after receiving recognition as a first-team designated player last year. Bailey replicated her numbers from her freshman All-America campaign. Bailey is the only player in school history to hit 15 home runs in consecutive seasons. She is also only the second player in school history to drive in 60 or more runs in consecutive seasons.
She hit .387 with 10 doubles and the 15 home runs. Her 61 runs batted in led the South Atlantic Conference. She had 18 multi-RBI efforts this year, including a six-RBI day against Milligan to match a career high. She has driven in at least four runs in six games this year. Bailey also matched a career high with a four-hit day against Milligan.
No pitcher in Carson-Newman history has finished more games than Ferguson. She has closed out 37 games in the circle in her C-N career and owns a 20-7 record with a 4.76 ERA. Ferguson is tied for second in school history in career saves and combined shutouts. She has struck out 73 in 64 appearances in her career.
Vandergriff earned All-SAC honors in the outfield after her sophomore season. A career .285 batter, Vandergriff has 103 hits in her career, including 17 doubles and four home runs. She hit a walk-off home run in her junior season to beat Mars Hill. She has 23 career multi-hit days, including a three-hit day against Lenoir-Rhyne in her sophomore season.
