Bradley Softball Announces 2019 Award Winners

Softball 5/23/2019 11:06:00 AM

PEORIA, Ill. -- Senior outfielder Gabby Stoner and junior first baseman Allison Apke were named Bradley Softball's 2019 co-Most Valuable Players announced by 11th-year head coach Amy Hayes Thursday.

Apke also garnered the team's Most Valuable Offensive Player honor for the second consecutive year, while Stoner earned Bradley's Softball's 4D award in recognition of her desire, dedication, determination and discipline. In addition, senior catcher Katie Habryle received the team's Defensive MVP honor, with sophomore utility Taise Thompson garnering the Most Improved Player award.

A Third-Team National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Mideast Region selection, Apke led the Braves with a .349 batting average and her 12 home runs tied for third most in the MVC this spring. The Second-Team All-Missouri Valley Conference pick in 2019 also received First-Team MVC Scholar-Athlete recognition. Apke was fourth in the Valley with a .675 slugging percentage, which is fifth among Bradley marks, while her .468 on base percentage was seventh in the MVC in addition to ranking seventh in Bradley history.

Apke hit .377 and drove in 24 runs during conference action, collecting hits in 20 of 25 league games in addition to reaching base safely in all but two MVC contests. She broke Bradley's career home run record this spring and is the only player in program history to have 10 or more homers in two different seasons. Overall, her 39 RBI in 2019 tied for the ninth-best season total all-time at Bradley.

While not having enough at bats to qualify for the team's batting average title due to an injury which sidelined her for six weeks, Stoner owned a career-best .416 batting average to go with a .636 slugging percentage and .521 on base percentage in 94 plate appearances.

A .415 hitter in 20 games prior to her injury, Stoner returned to the lineup for the final 11 games of the season and didn't miss a beat as she hit .417 (10-for-24) with nine runs and four RBI over the closing stretch. In fact, Stoner was named MVC Player of the Week after going 6-for-10 in her first full series back at Southern Illinois, where she scored five runs and drove in three. Despite missing almost half the season, Stoner tied for fourth on the team with nine multi-hit games.

Habryle was named to the MVC's All-Defensive team and boasted a team-best .989 fielding percentage, starting 30 of 50 games at catcher. An honorable mention MVC Scholar-Athlete, she helped Bradley to an 18-12 record when she was the team's starting backstop.

Habryle owned career highs for games played, starts, at bats, runs, hits, doubles, homers and RBI in her final season. She smashed four of her five homers in conference play, finishing her career tied for ninth in Bradley history with 14 career home runs. Habryle had nine multi-hit games and five outings with multiple RBI this past season.

After appearing 34 games with 19 starts and hitting .230 as a freshman, Thompson took over the starting spot at third base and was in the starting lineup in 40 of her 44 outings as a sophomore. She hit .316 on the year and was fourth on the team with 18 extra-base hits, pacing the team with 11 doubles. In fact, her 11 doubles tied for the 10th-best season total in Bradley history and she drove in 41 runs to rank second on the team (T6th most in school history) as she tallied a team-best 12 multi-RBI games.

A .300 hitter in Valley play, Thompson hit four home runs in MVC play and drove in 21 runs in league action. She was second on the squad with 24 two-out RBI. In addition to her work at the plate, she made 14 appearances in the circle out of the bullpen and owned a 1-2 record with the team's only save of the season in 28.1 innings of work.

Bradley closed the 2019 season with a 29-21 record to mark the team's most victories since 2004 (29-29) in addition to tying the program record for conference wins (15). The Braves finished fourth in the Valley standings with the team's .600 winning percentage marking the team's best in conference action dating back to a 9-5 (.643) campaign in 1994.

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