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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ––Tennessee senior shortstop Madison Shipman has been named the SEC Player of the Week, as announced by the conference office on Monday.
This week’s honor marks the second time Shipman has been named SEC Player of the Week this season and the third time she has received the accolades in her UT career. She previously was SEC Player of the Week on March 24, 2014, and April 9, 2012.
Shipman is the third Tennessee softball player to earn SEC Player of the Week honors three times in a career, joining Raven Chavanne (2010-13, six times) and Lindsay Schutzler (2004-07, three times).
Shipman was unstoppable at the plate this week, bashing five home runs with eight RBIs, seven runs, a 1.750 slugging percentage and a .600 on-base percentage (2.350 OPS).
Shipman played a major role in No. 4 Tennessee’s 13-5, five-inning win over Tennessee Tech on April 8.
She went 2-for-3 with a three-run homer that sparked a seven-run first inning and a solo homer in the second inning. UT’s three home runs in the first inning matched its most in a single inning since hitting three home runs against Tennessee State on April 2, 2013.
In Tennessee’s three-game series at No. 21 Texas A&M, Shipman hit .444 (4-for-9) with three home runs, four RBIs and four runs. She hit a solo home run in Tennessee’s 4-1 loss at Texas A&M in Game 1 of the series on April 11. That home run set a new single-season career high for Shipman.
Shipman went 3-for-4 and bashed two home runs in UT’s 15-2, five-inning rout of the Aggies on April 12, knocking a solo shot in the third and a two-run blast in the fourth. UT hit three home runs in the third inning, marking the second time it knocked three long balls in one inning in a matter of days. Tennessee hitters combined for five home runs in the win, tying a school record set back on April 25, 1999, in a 7-5 win against then-No. 15 Southern Mississippi. UT’s five home runs on Saturday were its most-ever in a road game.
On April 13, Shipman drew two walks and scored one run in UT’s 5-3 win over the Aggies that clinched the season series for Tennessee.
With five home runs on the week, Shipman moved to third place on Tennessee’s all-time list. Shipman now has 40 career homers and trails only Tonya Callahan (51 from 2005-08) and Lauren Gibson (46 from 2010-13).
Tennessee is back at home this week to open a five-game home stand, starting with a Tuesday game against Eastern Kentucky at 6 p.m. ET. All five games during the home stand will feature free live video on UTSports.com
About USSSA Florida Pride:
The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.
National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Nashville, TN. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL). NPF is the Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball in the category of women’s fastpitch softball since 2002.
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