CLEMSON, S.C. – Clemson Softball second-year freshman ace Valerie Cagle Valerie Cagle (Yorktown, Va.) has been named a top-25 finalist for one college softball’s most prestigious awards, the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, the organization announced on Friday.
USA Softball Release
Cagle (20-3), a two-way player for the Tigers, currently leads the ACC in ERA (0.89) and tied for first in wins (20) and saves (4). She is also second in batters struck out (166) and is one of just two players in the conference to toss more than 125.0 innings, having pitched 141.1 innings this season. In the batter’s box, she currently leads the team with a .388 batting average, good for seventh in the conference. Cagle is also currently the only player in the nation to garner both NFCA Player and Pitcher of the Week honors.
The list of 25 Finalists will be narrowed to 10 Finalists on May 5 before the Top 3 Finalists will be announced on May 19. The 2021 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be revealed prior to the 2021 NCAA Women’s College World Series (WCWS), which is set to take place June 3-9 at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex.
In addition to bestowing the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, USA Softball is now in its 19th season of presenting the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll, which is announced every Tuesday during the regular season. Follow along with NCAA Softball all season long at USASoftball.com.
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