EDMOND, Okla. – The Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) released their All-Region selections for softball Tuesday afternoon and senior Kayleigh Jones was named Pitcher of the Year, while Emily Adler earned a spot on the second team. Jones was also voted to the region's first team.
It is the first time a Bison has been named Pitcher of the Year by the committee and the only time an OBU softball player has garnered first-team honors. Jones is the second pitcher in GAC to garner the of-the-year award, joining Southern Arkansas's Victoria Taylor (2019).
Adler becomes the third Bison in program history to land a spot on the second team, joining Reagan Ford (2022) and Franki Hull (2019).
Last week wrapped a historic season for Oklahoma Baptist softball, headed by Jones and Adler. The duo led OBU to the second-most wins in school history (44) and a trip to the NCAA tournament.
Jones racked up 31 wins and 315 strikeouts while maintaining a 0.78 ERA in the circle. She twirled two no-hitters, 13 shutouts, and one save in 232.0 innings of work. Additionally, she became the first pitcher in conference history to attain 30 victories and 300 strikeouts in a single season.
Jones capped her year with two electrifying appearances against nationally ranked Harding and Central Oklahoma in the NCAA Central Regional
Tournament. In 14.0 innings against two of the best lineups in the country, Jones collected 10 strikeouts and gave up three earned runs.
Today's honors is just the latest of Jones' postseason accolades. She was named to the NFCA All-Region first team last week and picked up the program's first GAC Pitcher of the Year recognition. Additionally, she was a unanimous selection to the GAC's first team.
Adler tallies her second career All-Region honor after landing a spot on the NFCA's first team last week. She finished the year leading OBU in batting average (.398), hits (68), and on-base percentage (.462). She added 36 RBI and 17 stolen bases, both second-best on the team.
Adler compiled 18 multi-hit games and was the only Bison to record two four-hit games. Furthermore, Adler was voted the GAC's Player of the Year and notched an All-GAC first-team selection.
Oklahoma Baptist's selections were the second-most from any Great American Conference school. Harding led the way with three nods.
