G-MAC All-Conference Team

Malone University sophomore catcher Bailey Byers and her younger sister Kelsey Byers, a pitcher for the Pioneers, were each named Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) First Team All-Conference when the league announced its softball awards at its annual postseason banquet Wednesday night in Akron. Following a dominant rookie season, Kelsey Byers was also selected as the G-MAC Freshman of the Year in a league-wide vote among head coaches.


 
The Byers sisters, both of Alliance, OH and West Branch High School, led Malone to a 21-15 record in 2019 – its first 20-win campaign since 2002 – and a 13-11 mark in the G-MAC. The pitcher-catcher duo formed arguably the best battery in the conference, setting multiple school records as they guided the Pioneers to a historic season and the #6 seed in the upcoming G-MAC Tournament.
 
Bailey Byers started all 36 games for the Pioneers, including 35 behind the plate. The second-year backstop hit a staggering .465 (59-of-127) with 28 extra-base hits, including 12 doubles, three triples, and a single-season school record 13 homeruns. She collected 37 RBI, 29 runs scored, and two stolen bases while recording a .972 fielding percentage with 26 assists from her catcher position. She finished the regular season with a .485 on-base percentage and a .913 slugging percentage.


 
Among all players in the G-MAC, the power-hitting righty ranked second in batting average, homers, slugging percentage, and RBI per game (1.03). She was the G-MAC Player of the Week twice this season and was the NFCA DII National Player of the Week on March 13th. Already the Malone career record-holder in career homeruns (21), she has now been named G-MAC All-Conference in each of first her two seasons at Malone.
 
Kelsey Byers, a right-hander pitcher, turned heads early in her first season at Malone, posting 10 strikeouts in a four-hit shutout of perennial power West Virginia Wesleyan in her collegiate debut. That shutout set the tone for a fantastic freshman season in which she went 18-7 with a 2.29 ERA and 158 strikeouts in 165 innings pitched. She walked just 28 batters all season while setting the single-season school record for wins and strikeouts.


 
Among G-MAC pitchers, Kelsey was first in wins, innings pitched, complete games (23), and shutouts (4), including a one-hit complete game shutout of G-MAC Regular Season Champion Ohio Dominican on April 22nd. She ranked second in strikeouts, fourth in ERA, and fifth in batting average against (.245). Among all freshmen in NCAA Division II this spring, the first-year Pioneer ranked third in strikeouts and fifth in wins.
 
The Pioneers begin postseason play on Thursday, May 2nd when they take on Tiffin at Walsh University in the opening round of the G-MAC Tournament. First pitch is scheduled for 12:00 pm.