Murray State University Athletics
Jenna Bradley Named OVC Softball Player of the Year
5/11/2011 10:16:58 PM | Softball
Lauren Buch Selected to all-OVC First Team
2011 OVC Softball Banquet Photo Gallery
Murray State senior outfielder Jenna Bradley has been named the 2011 OVC Player of the Year in a vote by the league's coaches and sports information directors. The honor was announced at the pre-tournament banquet held at on the campus of Eastern Illinois University.
Bradley was also joined on the all-OVC First Team by catcher Lauren Buch. The pair represent MSU's first all-OVC First Team selections after the Racers placed a pair of players on the second team in 2010.
“When you're starting a program from scratch you need to build that around the right players,” Murray State head coach Jay Pyron said. “You try to recruit and find the players you feel can help you. Not only to win right away but lay the foundation for a successful program. Lauren and Jenna have both done that for us. They are incredibly different players in about every area and aspect you can imagine, but they've both performed at an incredibly high level and we're very excited to have them on our team.”
Bradley, a 2010 all-OVC Second Team selection, led the OVC in a number of categories this season, ranking first in the conference with 18 home runs, 59 runs scored, 55 runs batted in and 117 total bases. She also placed second in the OVC with a .830 slugging percentage, had the fourth-best on base percentage at .469, was fifth in the conference with 12 doubles on the season and was sixth in steals with 19.
Her power numbers put her among the best in the nation. She ranked fourth in the country with 1.2 runs scored per game and was ninth overall in the NCAA in home runs. Bradley drove in 1.12 runs per game, 18th best in the nation and her slugging percentage was good for 13th best overall.
She turned up the production when the Racers reached the conference portion of the schedule, hitting .413 against OVC foes with an incredible 15 home runs, 42 RBI and 37 runs scored coming against conference opposition.
Buch was a model of consistency for MSU this year, leading the OVC with a .421 batting average that never dropped below .389 all season.
She also led the league with a .536 on base percentage and a .857 slugging percentage. She was near the top of the OVC in a number of other categories, ranking second with 54 runs batted in, third with 49 runs scored, third with 15 home runs, placed third with 13 doubles, and was second in the league with 114 total bases.
Buch also sat near the top of a number of statistical categories in the country. Her batting average ranked 39th nationally and she was 10th overall in slugging percentage. She was 16th nationally in on base percentage and was 27th in the NCAA in home runs.
“Jenna and Lauren make everyone around them better and it's got to be a neat thrill for our younger players to play along with two great players like that and see how they go about their business every day, the approach they take, the attitude they have and the work ethic they display,” Pyron said.
Sixth-seeded Murray State kicks off action at the OVC Championships Thursday morning, taking on #3 seed UT Martin at 10 a.m. at Williams Field on the campus of Eastern Illinois in Charleston, Ill.
