Bobcats make SBC tournament team

Texas State softball had two players named to the 2023 All-Sun Belt Conference Team. Pitcher Jessica Mullins was named to the First Team and third baseman Sara Vanderford was named to the Second Team.

Both players were named to the Preseason All-Sun Belt team.

Mullins has been named to the All-Sun Belt First Team all three of her years at Texas State. The junior pitcher returns to the list after being named the 2022 Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year and selected as the 2023 Preseason Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year.

Mullins also won an award for Sun Belt Player of the Week in the 2023 season the week of March 14 when she had wins against Alabama and Texas. She finished the regular season with a 1.95 ERA, a 20-10 record, and having struck out 164 batters and allowed just 50 earned runs throughout the 2023 season.

The pitcher has made her presence known in the Sun Belt, having 20+ wins in each of the three seasons of her career and boasting a cumulative sub-2.0 ERA along the way.

“When you have a pitcher like Mullins, she’s going to put you in positions to win ball games,” head coach Ricci Woodard said, “That’s what she did for us all year and what she’s been doing for her whole career.”

For Vanderford, this is the second time in her career being named to the All-Sun Belt team. She was named All-Sun Belt First Team in her freshman year where she was also named Sun Belt Freshman of the Year. The senior was named to the 2023 Preseason All-Conference team.

Vanderford finished the season batting .307 on the year with 30 runs from 51 hits. She led the Bobcats and the Sun Belt with 15 doubles on the season. The third baseman also played a big part in the Bobcat defense, being key in the Bobcats conference-leading double plays turned per game.

She was named Sun Belt Player of the Week the week of Feb. 14 for a weekend batting .538 with an on-base percentage plus slugging of 1.724 in Texas State’s three-win weekend. She went 7-of-13 with four doubles, one home run and five RBIs while also walking four times with no strikeouts in five starts.

Vanderford is in the top 10 in program history in nearly every offensive statistic possible. The senior is the career leader in doubles after hitting her 51st against Marshall. Additionally, she’s 2nd overall in batting average (.327), RBI (137) and home runs (29).

“Vanderford is a player that can make an impact in every part of the game,” Woodard said. “Her experience and leadership are a big part of this group and I’m glad she was able to get recognized for the work she put in.”

The Bobcats will continue play in the Sun Belt Conference Championship on Thursday, May 11th at 4 p.m. Texas State will face the Troy Trojans to open the tournament in the quarterfinals. The game will be available to stream on ESPN+.