NEW ORLEANS – Great moments, great accomplishments, great performances.
Sun Belt Conference softball has enjoyed a storied history from Women's College World Series appearances to All-America accolades. In 20-plus seasons, these former standouts have left lasting impressions with their performances on the field and honors and recognitions off the field.
The Sun Belt takes a look back at some of the all-time top performers in conference history, highlighting one from each of the league's current 10 programs.
COASTAL CAROLINA
Kassidy Smith, 1B/C, 2017-20
Kassidy Smith was accomplished both on and off the field during her time at Coastal Carolina. Now, she has her sights set on getting into coaching and eventually reaching her goal of becoming a pediatric physician's assistant.
On the field for the Chanticleers, Smith was named Sun Belt Player of the Week twice and earned a spot on the Sun Belt All-Tournament Team as a junior. In the classroom, she was named to the school's Dean's List three times and an NFCA Academic All-American in 2018, as well as receiving recognition as a Kenneth E. Swain Scholar and Coastal Carolina Honors Research Fellow. Smith was named to the Sun Belt Commissioner's List twice and Sun Belt Academic Honor Roll once. A leader off the field, she was Co-President of the school's Honors Student Council, President of the school's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and Coastal Carolina's representative on the Sun Belt SAAC.
The Collinsville, Ill., native carried a big bat for the Chanticleers, leading the Sun Belt in home runs (15) in 2019. She closed her playing career as the school's all-time leader in in walks (118) and most times hit by a pitch (41). Smith also hold the school's single-season record in walks (43) and most HBP (18). She closed her career with a .253 batting average with 118 hits, 109 runs scored and 100 RBI.
GEORGIA SOUTHERN
Emily Snider Howard, OF, 2014-17
Emily Snider Howard has moved on from her playing days in Statesboro. She served as a graduate assistant for her Eagles squad following her senior season. The next year, she married former Georgia Southern baseball standout and current Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Sam Howard. A busy couple of years after college following a stellar four-year career roaming the outfield for the Eagles.
The Tennille, Ga., native twice earned All-Sun Belt honors – second team in 2016 and first team in 2017. As a senior, she received second-team honors on the National Fastball Coaches Association All-South Region team and garnered recognition on the Sun Belt Academic Honor Roll.
Snider Howard still ranks in the school's career top five in runs scored (2nd, 133), home runs (3rd, 31), RBI (4th, 120), slugging percentage (4th, .526) and hits (5th, 198). She holds the school's single-season record in slugging percentage (.810) posted as a senior. In that same season, she belted 16 home runs, which ranks as the second-most in a single season in school history.
GEORGIA STATE
Ivie Drake, C, 2015-18
Ivie Drake was a dominant force around the plate during her four seasons with the Panthers, whether that was behind the plate as a catcher or in the batter's box as one of the most prolific hitters in Sun Belt history.
Drake finished her illustrious career peppering the conference's career lists – first in hits (285) and walks (177), second in batting average (.409) and slugging percentage (.777), tied for fourth in doubles (53), fifth in RBI (215) and sixth in home runs (65). She even owns an NCAA Division I record. On April 14, 2018, Drake set the Division I record for most walks in a seven-inning contest with seven. Six of those base on balls were intentional, which equaled the NCAA record. The two-time Sun Belt batting champion captured the league's triple crown during her senior season, leading the way in average (.409), home runs (18) and RBI (60).
Her success at the plate brought in a bevy of honors, highlighted by NFCA All-America honors in 2015 (second team) and 2018 (first team), four All-Sun Belt honors including three first-team recognitions (2015, 2017 and 2018) to go along with being named Sun Belt Freshman of the Year and an NFCA National Freshman of the Year finalist in 2015 and Sun Belt Player of the Week eight times.
Not only did Drake have success on the field, but she also excelled in the classroom. She was earned CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in 2018 and Academic All-District accolades in 2017 and 2018. At Georgia State, Drake was named to the President's List three times and Dean's List four times while majoring in early childhood education.
These days, the Carlton, Ga., native is combining her two passions – softball and teaching – in a place she knows very well. Drake is now a teacher in her home county where she also helps coach the softball team at her alma mater, Madison County High School.
LOUISIANA
Brooke Mitchell Garrity, P, 2002-05
Brooke Mitchell Garrity is a Hall of Famer for good reasons.
The 2010 Louisiana Athletics Hall of Fame inductee put together one of the most impressive careers in Sun Belt softball history. Her list of accolades is long – fourth Ragin' Cajun in school history to be named first-team NFCA All-America (2004), only player in conference history to be named Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year three times and in three-consecutive seasons (2003, 2004, 2005), four-time All-Sun Belt selection (2002, 2003, 2004, 2005), 2002 Sun Belt Freshman of the Year, two-time CoSIDA Academic All-America (2004, 2005) and three-time CoSIDA Academic All-District recipient.
Garrity was dominant in the circle when it counted. She led Louisiana to the 2003 NCAA Women's College World Series, earning wins in the every postseason victory for the Ragin' Cajuns – three in Sun Belt Softball Tournament and four in the NCAA Division I Softball Regional in Fullerton, Calif. The next season, Garrity had her breakout season and led Louisiana to wins over top-seeded Arizona (eliminating the host Wildcats with a complete-game shutout) and Oklahoma in the NCAA Regional in Tucson, Ariz. Her Ragin' Cajuns lost to the Sooners in the regional's final game to fall short of making a return trip to the WCWS.
Garrity's 2004 season was simply impressive – 45-5 record with a 0.82 earned run average and 524 strikeouts in 315.2 innings pitched with five no-hitters, 14 complete game shutouts and 10 combined shutouts. Her single-season totals for wins, strikeouts and ERA that season stand as school and Sun Belt records.
For her career, Garrity holds the school and conference records for victories (119) and strikeouts (1,309) and sits as the Sun Belt leader in career no-hitters (10). She ranks in the conference's career top five in complete games (1st, 115), ERA (2nd, 1.09), games started (2nd, 146), shutouts (40, 2nd), appearances (3rd, 160) and innings pitched (4th, 908.2). Garrity is the only pitcher in school history to amass 1,000-plus career strikeouts.
Garrity capped off her time in Lafayette by earning a degree in finance in 2005. The Pasadena, Texas, native now resides in Baton Rouge, La., with her husband and two daughters.
ULM
Sydney McKay, OF, 2016-19
Sydney McKay was a model of consistency throughout her time playing for the Warhawks.
Nicknamed Pip, McKay started all 230 games ULM played over her four seasons. She left her mark all over the school's records book, finishing as the all-time leader in hits (270) and at-bats (769), second in games started (230), stolen bases (112) and stolen base attempts (131), third in batting average (.351), fourth in games played (230) and fifth in runs scored (141) and total bases (313). Her 112 stolen bases rank third in Sun Belt history.
McKay was a part of the ULM squad that made an improbable run in the 2019 Sun Belt Softball Championship. Her eighth-seeded Warhawks battled for four days, eliminating three teams, before falling one game short of playing for the tournament title.
The Pearland, Texas, native earned three All-Sun Belt honors – first team in 2018 and 2019 and second team in 2017. She was just as successful in the classroom as well being named to the Sun Belt Commissioner’s List in 2019 and Sun Belt Academic Honor Roll in 2016 and 2018.
McKay is using her success both on and off the field as a foundation for her career after softball. With her accounting degree in hand, McKay is embarking on a career in the financial world with the goal of becoming a CEO.
SOUTH ALABAMA
Brittany Fowler-Kessler, 2B/SS/OF, 2010-13
Before trading in her softball uniform for a nurse's uniform, Brittany Fowler-Kessler was one of the most versatile players in Sun Belt history.
One of the first two softball players to be inducted into the South Alabama Athletics Hall of Fame, Fowler-Kessler earned All-Sun Belt honors all four seasons at three different positions. She earned first-team honors at shortstop and was selected Sun Belt Player of the Year in 2013 as a senior. She garnered second-team recognition three times – at second base in 2010, in the outfield in 2011 and at shortstop in 2012 – and was named to the Sun Belt Softball Championship All-Tournament Team twice in 2012 and 2013.
Fowler-Kessler closed her time with the Jaguars as the school's all-time leader in runs scored (162), runs batted in (136), triples (10), extra-base hits (69), on-base percentage (.465) and multiple-RBI games (33). The Jacksonville, Fla., native led South Alabama in batting average — never hitting below .340 — triples and on-base percentage three of her four seasons, also pacing the team in base hits each of her first three years and in runs scored, RBI and slugging percentage on multiple occasions.
A starter in every game she played as a Jaguar, Fowler-Kessler helped lead South Alabama to its first two NCAA Division I Softball Championship appearances in program history. Her three-run home run in the bottom of the fifth inning propelled the Jaguars to 3-1 win over sixth-ranked Louisiana in 2012 Sun Belt Tournament title game. Her South Alabama squad went on to play in its first NCAA Regional that season and returned to the postseason in her final season, hosting an NCAA Regional for the first time in program history.
After completing her Hall of Fame career on the field, Fowler-Kessler traded uniforms but continued her ability to be a key contributor on a team. She is currently working as an emergency room nurse at Providence Hospital in Mobile, Ala.
TEXAS STATE
Randi Rupp-Hennigan, P, 2015-18
Randi Rupp-Hennigan was simply one of the best to step into the circle in Sun Belt history.
Rupp-Hennigan's career numbers are nothing short of impressive – the conference's all-time leader in innings pitched (1,057.1), appearances (187), games started (160) and shutouts (42). She also ranks second in wins (109), third in strikeouts (1,270) and fourth in saves (9). The only Texas State player in school history to throw multiple perfect games recorded double-digit strikeout performances on 41 different occasions. The Mont Belvieu, Texas, native closed her career with a 1.69 ERA, which ranks third in school history.
Rupp-Hennigan accomplished the rare feat of being named to the All-Sun Belt first team four times. The two-time NFCA All-America selection was named the Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year in 2017 and 2018 and was named Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week 14 times. She was named to the 2018 Sun Belt All-Tournament Team in helping lead her Bobcats sweep the regular-season and tournament titles.
These days, Rupp-Hennigan is still not done being dominant in the circle. She was selected fourth overall by the Cleveland Comets in the National Pro Fastpitch Draft. In two seasons with the Comets, Rupp-Hennigan has recorded nine wins and led the team in wins and was second in strikeouts and innings pitched as a rookie. She has played on touring Chinese (2018) and Mexican (2019) national teams and is slated to return to the Comets once again this summer, schedule permitting.
TROY
Ashlyn Williams, P, 2008-11
Ashlyn Williams was a presence in circle from the moment she stepped on the field at the Troy Softball Complex.
Williams rewrote the school's single-season records in her first season, setting the freshman records for appearances (52), games started (38), complete games (27), shutouts (8), wins (28), innings pitched (298.1) and strikeouts (303). She capped her rookie campaign being named Sun Belt Freshman of the Year and first-team All-Sun Belt honors.
Her first season was a foreshadowing for much more to come. Success on the diamond garnered Williams a total of three All-Sun Belt honors, adding a second first-team honor in 2009 and a second-team recognition in 2011. The five-time Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week consistently came up big in the big moments. In the Trojans' first game of the 2010 Sun Belt Softball Championship, Williams hurled the second no-hitter of her career. She struck out 14 and gave up just one walk against North Texas. Troy used the momentum from the opener to advance to the championship game, the Trojans' last title game appearance.
By the time she threw her last pitch as a Trojan, Williams had made her mark as one of the most dominant pitchers in Sun Belt history. She finished her career second in conference history in innings pitched (1,044.2), appearances (179) and strikeouts (1,301) and third in conference history in wins (93) and complete games (109). Her 402 strikeouts as a junior in 2010 rank as the second-most, single-season total in Sun Belt history.
After finishing her collegiate playing career, Williams spent the summer of 2011 playing in the European Softball League. She guided the Gryphons (Netherlands) to a division championship with a 36-2 record and 16 shutouts. The Hattiesburg, Miss., native then moved into coaching, serving as a volunteer assistant at Southern Miss for one season and pitching coach at ULM for one season.
Williams earned her Master's degree from Southern Miss in 2015 and presently works as a licensed social worker in Biloxi, Miss.