Lady Parsons end season with ACCC Tournament loss, Slaten and West earn postseason honors

BOAZ, Ala. – Snead State Softball's ACCC Championship Tournament run in Alabaster was cut short Friday after the Lady Parsons fell to Central Alabama 3-0.

Over the course of the tournament, the Lady Parsons were 2-2. They picked up a 6-5 win over Lurleen B. Wallace in Round One. Lydia West homered in the sixth inning to drive in three runs, which fueled the come-from-behind victory.

West also spent time in the circle, pitching three innings in relief for winning pitcher Reagan Cornelius. The pair combined for seven strikeouts.

In their second game of the tournament, the Lady Parsons lost a nail-biter to the South Division's top-seed Coastal Alabama-South.

Ahead early, the Lady Parsons held a 6-5 advantage through six and a half innings, but gave up two runs in the bottom of the sixth and couldn't recover.

As a team, Snead State tallied 10 hits, including two homeruns from Riley Sharp and Adelyn Ellis, and six earned runs in the loss.

The Lady Parsons bounced back in their third game of the tournament against Marion Military Institute with a 10-6 win. Brittany Slaten and Addie Walker propelled Snead State to victory by each batting 4-for-5 and driving in two runs. The Lady Parsons recorded 19 hits as a team.

In the pitcher's circle, Lydia West earned the win. She allowed five hits and two earned runs over 4.2 innings. In relief, Cornelius and Chloe Smith combined for two hits and two earned runs over the remaining 2.1 innings.

Against Central Alabama, the Lady Parsons could not find success at the plate, only tallying six hits with no runs to show for it. West pitched a complete game, striking out three batters and allowing five hits and two earned runs.

The Lady Parsons end the year 31-33 overall, 18-17 in ACCC play.

Slaten named NJCAA Region 22 and ACCC Player of the Year

As the Lady Parsons' season comes to a close, Slaten was selected as the 2023 NJCAA Region 22 Player of the Year and ACCC Player of the Year.

Slaten, a freshman from Guntersville majoring in Business, posted the second-best batting average in the ACCC (.430) on the year. She also recorded 43 RBIs, 32 stolen bases – both team-highs – and six homeruns. She was only caught stealing once.

Over the season, Slaten has split time at short-stop and the pitcher's circle. Over 28 innings pitched, she totaled 19 strikeouts and an ERA of 6.00.

Slaten also earned First Team All-Region 22 and ACCC All-North Division Team honors.

West, a freshman from Geraldine, was selected to the All-Region 22 Second Team and the ACCC All-North Division Team. Her batting average was .374, with a .430 on-base percentage and a .578 slugging percentage. Lydia had 70 hits in 187 at bats with 11 doubles, nine home runs and 42 RBIs.