CANTON, Ga. – Berry wrapped up its fourth-straight SAA softball title, winning a huge series against Millsaps that clinched the crown. The Vikings closed the conference season 13-2 and stand at 28-10 overall going into the final week of the regular season. Millsaps and Rhodes are tied for second at 8-4. The Lynx will play Centre in the season finale while the Warriors have three games with Hendrix.
The 2025 SAA Softball Championship is set for May 8-11 in Columbus, Georgia.
Around the SAA:
Athletes of the Week:
Athlete:
Lauren Cothern | Berry | Junior | Sugar Hill, Ga. – led the Vikings in two SAA series wins over Sewanee and Millsaps to capture the 2025 SAA Softball regular season championship. The junior went a combined 11-20 in the games while racking up 11 RBIs on four home runs. She had a monster opener against the Majors, going 3-for-3 with six RBIs behind a trio of home runs. Cothern hit .600 in the championship clinching series against Millsaps.
Pitcher:
Hanna Gore | Berry | Senior | Roswell, Ga. – made four appearances last week, picking up three wins. She threw four innings, hitless innings against Sewanee, racking up nine strikeouts. The next day she added two innings without a hit, striking out four. In a huge match-up with Millsaps, Gore tossed a complete game, allowing four hits and just one run while striking out nine. She added another win against the Majors, scattering four hits and one run with six strikeouts in four innings of work. For the week, Gore tallied a 0.82 ERA in 17 innings with 28 strikeouts.
Notable Performances:
- Ashley Howard (Centre) - recorded eight strikeouts across her two starts this week and turned in her longest outing of the season on Sunday against Maryville, pitching 10.2 innings and not allowing an earned run until the eighth inning.
- Emma Salis (Hendrix) - tossed a complete game shutout against Sewanee in Game 1 of their weekend series. The junior scattered four hits across 7.0 IP and struck out four to earn her fourth winning decision of the seaon. Saturday marked the first complete game shutout of her career.
- Layne Ogle (Centre) – in Sunday's doubleheader against Maryville, Layne Ogle hit .625 at the plate (5-8), recording RBIs in both games. Ogle went 4-5 in the 11-inning second game with a pair of doubles and her two-out single in the eighth inning tied the game.
2025 Softball Report Archive (AOW Athlete/Pitcher)
Feb. 3 – Brynn Arena (Millsaps)/Hailey Peterson (Millsaps)
Feb. 10 – Paige Bennett (Berry)/Hannah Gore (Berry)
Feb. 17 – Allana Vasquez (Millsaps)/Allana Vasquez (Millsaps)
Feb. 24 – Lauren Cothern (Berry)/Emma Salis (Hendrix)
March 3 – Betty Wolfe (Hendrix)/Kennedy Caudill (Centre)
March 10 – Christian Cain (Sewanee)/Reagen Huskey (Sewanee)
March 17 – Lauren Cothern (Berry)/Hannah Gore (Berry)
March 24 – Abbie Buckner (Sewanee)/Hannah Gore (Berry)
March 31 – Kinsey Smith (Millsaps)/Hannah Gore (Berry)
April 7 – Jasmyn Stanley (Rhodes)/Gina Dudley (Rhodes)
April 14 – Elly Bennett (Berry)/Gina Dudley (Rhodes)
April 21 – Harper Allee-Press (Rhodes)/Gina Dudley (Rhodes)