CLEMSON, S.C. – For the sixth time this season, Clemson softball’s Valerie Cagle has garnered ACC weekly honors after being selected as the ACC Co-Player of the Week the league office announced on Tuesday. This also is the 12th ACC weekly honor of her career.
The Yorktown, Va., native once again led the charge for the No. 6/7 Tigers with a .545 average with six hits, including a double and four home runs, to maintain a 1.727 slugging percentage. She was walked six times to tally a .706 on-base percentage, amassed 10 RBIs, scored six runs and stole one base. Last week started with a bang for the redshirt junior against in-state rival South Carolina. With two on, two out and two strikes in the top of the seventh inning, Cagle sent a three-run shot out of left field to claim the lead for the Tigers and then earned the 72nd win of her career in the circle in the bottom half of the inning to sweep the Palmetto Series.
Cagle remained hot at the plate at NC State where she finished with a .714 average and 2.142 slugging percentage. She led off the weekend with two hits and one RBI at the plate and earned the victory in the circle with eight strikeouts. She continued Saturday with two home runs against the Wolfpack clocking three RBIs and scoring three runs. She rounded out the weekend with a three-run homer, her 18th of the season, which set a new Clemson single-season record and is enough to tie for the nation lead.
Heading into this week, Cagle leads the ACC in 11 categories: batting average (.485), ERA (0.73), hits (63), home runs (18), on-base percentage (.573), RBIs (51), runs batted in per game (1.13), shutouts (7), slugging percentage (1.015), total bases (132) and victories (20). In those categories, she leads the nation in home runs and total bases, while ranking in the top 10 in eight additional categories.
Cagle shares the weekly honor with Duke’s D’Auna Jennings, while Eden Bigham from Virginia was named ACC Pitcher of the Week.
