SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Samford’s Whitney Hinton and ETSU’s Kelly Schmidt have been named the Southern Conference softball player and pitcher of the week, respectively, for games played Feb. 17-23, the conference office announced Monday.
 
Hinton hit .500 (10-for-20) with three home runs and seven RBIs in six games, four of which came against ACC or SEC opponents, two of which were ranked opponents. The native of Theodore, Alabama, had at least one hit in all six games and two of more in half of the contests. The preseason all-conference second-team selection began the week going 1-for-2 in a loss at No. 18 Georgia on Feb. 19. She went 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBIs in the first game of the Samford Softball Tournament on Friday, a 9-1 win over DePaul. Later that day, Hinton, a senior, went 2-for-3 with an RBI against No. 11 Kentucky. She added another pair of hits against DePaul on Saturday before going 1-for-3 against Georgia Tech that afternoon. In Sunday’s finale, Hinton hit a two-run home run as the Bulldogs beat Georgia Tech 6-5, recording the program’s first win over an ACC team since 1999.
 
Schmidt, a senior, pitched five innings in Friday’s game against Marshall, allowing six hits but giving up just one run. She added two strikeouts, leaving the game with a 2-1 lead. On Saturday, the Norcross, Georgia, native, collected her first win of the season against Rhode Island. Schmidt pitched a complete game and carried a no-hitter into the final inning before surrendering an infield hit. She added five strikeouts in the 4-0 win. On the week, she pitched 12 innings and allowed just one run on seven hits, finishing with an impressive .058 ERA.
 
Others nominated for player of the week: Andrea Sarhatt (ETSU), Danielle Castleberry (Mercer) and Kayleigh Willis (UNCG).
 
Others nominated for pitcher of the week: Bailey Pattison (Mercer) and Kylie Bouplon (UNCG).
 
2020 SoCon Softball Players of the Week
Feb. 10 – O’Neil Roberson, 1B, Jr., Samford
Feb. 17 – Delaney Cumbie, C, So., UNCG
Feb. 24 – Whitney Hinton, 2B, Sr., Samford
 
 2020 SoCon Softball Pitchers of the Week
Feb. 10 – Celie Hudson, Sr., Chattanooga
Feb. 17 – Savannah Rice, Fr., Western Carolina
Feb. 24 – Kelly Schmidt, Sr, ETSU