Mississippi State fifth-year senior first baseman Madisyn Kennedy was named a Second-Team All-American by D1Softball on Tuesday after enjoying the best season of her career this spring.
After starting at shortstop for the majority of her career, Kennedy shifted to first base this year to make room for freshman Kylee Edwards, and she finished her final season second in the Southeastern Conference in slugging percentage (.792), tied for fourth in home runs with 17 and sixth in runs batted in with 56. She was among the best hitters in college softball in March, with a .547 on-base percentage, 10 homers and 34 RBI in 19 games that month.
Despite a cold stretch toward the end of the year, Kennedy still ranks among the top 30 players nationally in home runs, RBI and slugging percentage, finishing third in the SEC with a 1.222 OPS. She ended her Bulldogs career fourth in program history with 40 homers, and reached base in 25 straight games during the season.
MSU finished sixth in the SEC with a 12-12 conference record, the first time the Bulldogs were .500 or better in SEC play since 2007. They returned to the NCAA Tournament after a one-year absence, winning their first game at the Stanford Regional before losing to No. 8 Stanford and Cal State Fullerton.
Kennedy will begin pursuing a doctorate in occupational therapy at Baylor University in January 2025.
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