GSU Athletes Rake in Awards

The softball team has had quite a run over the past month, winning 12 in a row and sweeping Delaware this past week.

A lot of that success is due to the great performance of leadoff hitter Jessica Clifton, who was named the Colonial Athletic Association's Rookie of the Week for the second time this season.

Clifton batted .333 on the week with four hits, two doubles, two walks, one RBI and four runs scored.

"Honestly I felt like I was in a bit of a slump before this past week," Clifton said. "I had to get back to the fundamentals.

"I really started to be patient at the plate. I was waiting for pitches I can hit at the beginning of the at bat."

She is fifth on the team in batting average (.254), fourth in RBIs (15), third in hits (34) and second in doubles (7).

"She's our leadoff hitter," coach Roger Kincaid said. "We need her to produce good at bats, quality at bats that set the tone for the rest of the team. She really jumpstarts the offense for us."

The Panthers are 28-18 overall so far this season with just one loss in the CAA at 11-1.

Today, Georgia State plays in a doubleheader at James Madison University. The first game begins at 10 a.m. and the latter begins at 12:15 p.m.

Along with Clifton, Yolanda Berryhill was also honored by the conference for her outstanding performance as she received her second CAA Athlete of the Week for track and field. Berryhill throws has had quite a bit of success this week in the discus.

"I just try to be consistent," she said. "I've been trying to keep my distant consistent in the 150s. But I would really like to extend it to the 160-170 range."

Her ultimate goal is to make it to the second round of nationals this year. Last year she made it to the first round before being ousted.

"I want to go a step farther than I did last year" the 22-year-old senior exercise science major said. "I want to be competitive and help my team get as far as we can."

Berryhill along with her track and field teammates are in action today at the Mississippi Open at the University of Mississippi in Oxford.