Clemson's Valerie Cagle named USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year
Clemson softball's Valerie Cagle is the 2023 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year. The junior right-handed pitcher and first baseman was a finalist for the award alongside UCLA's Maya Brady and Florida's Skylar Wallace.
Cagle had been a top-25 finalist for the award in all three of her seasons and a top-10 finalist in back-to-back years before being named the recipient by USA Softball on Tuesday.
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Cagle led Clemson to its second straight NCAA Super Regional appearance this season. She posted a 1.56 ERA in 61 appearances, including 30 starts, 22 complete games and eight solo shutouts. She struck out 188 batters while walking 35. Early in the season, Cagle threw the first perfect game in Clemson's four-year history, a five-inning win over Mercer.
At the plate, Cagle was Clemson's top hitter. She finished the season with a .469 batting average, .565 on-base percentage, an .887 slugging percentage and 19 home runs, all of which led Clemson's regular lineup.
Clemson's 2023 season ended in the NCAA Tournament on Saturday after the No. 16-seed Tigers fell to No. 1-seed Oklahoma.
Christina Long covers the Clemson Tigers for the Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. You can follow her on Twitter @christinalong00 or email her at clong@greenvillenews.com.
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson softball's Valerie Cagle named USA Softball player of the year
