May 25, 2021
East Central Community College softball player Zharia Richardson, a freshman from Gulfport, earned First Team All-Conference honors while Katelynn Gipson, a freshman from Decatur, picked up an honorable mention nod for their solid play through the year in the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference.
Richardson was ECCC's leading hitter as she posted a .391 batting average and a .765 slugging percentage. The powerful, right-handed batter drove in a team-high 40 runs and was tied for the most runs scored with 32. She finished the season with 45 hits, 11 of which were homers and 10 doubles. In the field, she was a solid third baseman as she posted a .903 fielding percentage.
Gipson was another very solid bat in the Lady Warriors' lineup. The freshman batted .336 on the year and drove in 32 runs. She also tied with Richardson on runs scored with 32. Gipson could also go yard as she blasted nine homers to go along with nine doubles and a team-best two triples.
Overall the Lady Warriors finished the year 13-27, and just missed out on the postseason, but with two strong performances from a pair of freshmen, the future is bright for the Lady Warriors softball program.
