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Softball 5/2/2019 4:29:00 PM CU Athletics

Lady Tiger softball has nine earn All-Conference honors, Aldridge earns Gold Glove

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Nine Lady Tigers earned All Mid-South Conference softball honors, which was announced at the awards banquet Thursday night at the National Corvette Museum.

The Lady Tigers had five on the first-team – Ryley Whitney, Tori Humphrey, Mia Aldridge, Payton Blades and Morgan Gailor. On the second team, CU was represented by Riley Hurst, Ryleigh Oldham, Hannah Judd and Lexi Miller.

In addition to the All-Conference honors, Aldridge also picked up the Gold Glove award after not falling victim to an error at first base all season.

The Mid-South Conference teams are voted on by the coaches.

Whitney hit .308 on the season and was voted as the top catcher in the Mid-South Conference. In addition to her average, she hit nine home runs in the regular season with 25 RBI. It's the second time Whitney earned First-Team honors.

Humphrey had a stellar conference season. Hitting .299 overall, Humphrey upped her play during the 24 conference games by hitting .280 with nine of her 11 home runs and 25 of her 39 RBI. Humphrey is also slugging .658 on the year. Humphrey earns her third-straight First-Team honor.

Aldridge, also coming off an injury like Humphrey, moved positions this year and she didn't miss a beat. Not only was she perfect at first base without an error, Aldridge hit .347 with nine homers and 34 RBI. She also leads the team with 11 stolen bases and not being thrown out once. Aldridge's First-Team honor is the first in her career.

Payton Blades was voted the second-best freshman in the league and earned First-Team honors. Blades, a true utility player, started in all 41 games and was second on the team in hitting with a .354 average. She also hit 10 home runs and drove in 37 RBI. Blades started a few games at first and also saw 13 games in the circle – four as a starter – and has a 2.60 ERA.

Morgan Gailor finished second in Pitcher of the Year voting and had a solid senior season. She finished with a 15-6 record, 2.58 ERA and struck out 114 batters. The 15 wins is the most in the MSC and her 10 wins in conference play is also tops in the league. The First-Team mention is Gailor's first in her career as well.

On the second team, CU is led by three freshmen and a sophomore – all their first MSC honors.

Miller leads CU by hitting .366 and has started in 40 of the 41 games in left field. Judd is fourth on the team in hitting at .345 with seven homers and 18 RBI. Hurst has started all 41 games at shortstop and is tied with Humphrey for the team lead in home runs (11). She's also leading CU with 45 RBI – third in the MSC. Her .678 slugging percentage is also tops on the team and fourth in the MSC.

Lindsey Wilson's Callum Pilgrim was named the MSC Player of the Year along with Annabelle Ramirez being named Pitcher of the Year.

Maddie Sickau from University of the Cumberlands was named the Freshman of the Year, while former Lady Tiger ('12) and current Cumberlands head coach Bailey Dillender was named Coach of the Year for the first time in her two-year career.

The Mid-South Conference Championship begins on Friday as the second-seeded Lady Tigers are scheduled to play seventh-seeded University of Pikeville at 1:30 p.m. ET. Fans can tune into the CU Sports Network throughout the weekend for coverage.

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Players Mentioned

#4 Mia Aldridge: LF; 5' 7"; Junior; Lawrenceburg, Ky.

#17 Morgan Gailor: RHP; 5' 7"; Senior; Louisville, Ky.

#9 Tori Humphrey: 3B; 5' 8"; Junior; Paducah, Ky.

#21 Ryleigh Oldham: RF; 5' 5"; Sophomore; Madisonville, Ky.

#15 Ryley Whitney: C; 5' 9"; Sophomore; Scottsville, Ky.

#6 Hannah Judd: INF.; 5' 4"; Freshman; Greensburg, Ky.

#2 Payton Blades: RHP/UTIL; 5' 5"; Freshman; Island, Ky.

#3 Lexi Miller: OF; 5' 7"; Freshman; Madisonville, Ky.

#1 Riley Hurst: SS; 5' 11"; Freshman; Baxter, Tenn.

Players Mentioned

#4 Mia Aldridge
: 5' 7"; Junior; Lawrenceburg, Ky.
: LF

#17 Morgan Gailor
: 5' 7"; Senior; Louisville, Ky.
: RHP

#9 Tori Humphrey
: 5' 8"; Junior; Paducah, Ky.
: 3B

#21 Ryleigh Oldham
: 5' 5"; Sophomore; Madisonville, Ky.
: RF

#15 Ryley Whitney
: 5' 9"; Sophomore; Scottsville, Ky.
: C

#6 Hannah Judd
: 5' 4"; Freshman; Greensburg, Ky.
: INF.

#2 Payton Blades
: 5' 5"; Freshman; Island, Ky.
: RHP/UTIL

#3 Lexi Miller
: 5' 7"; Freshman; Madisonville, Ky.
: OF

#1 Riley Hurst
: 5' 11"; Freshman; Baxter, Tenn.
: SS