VALDOSTA, Ga. – Valdosta State softball junior infielder Nicole Pennington became the latest to be featured on the award-winning Blazer Spotlight Podcast.  Pennington leads all of NCAA Division II with 11 home runs on the season.
 
Click on the links to the right of this story to hear the podcast and previous editions.  Check back each Friday throughout the season for new editions of The Blazer Spotlight Podcast.  Fans, don't forget to rate and subscribe for alerts for future content of The Blazer Spotlight Podcast.
 
Pennington, a native of Palm Bay, Fla., has had an outstanding week as she was named Gulf South Conference Co-Player of the Week, National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division II National Player of the Week and Steel's Jewelry Blazer Athlete of the Week.
 
She has been tearing the cover off the ball as she recorded a home run in each of the three key GSC victories over then-No. 17 West Florida last weekend.  Pennington has reached safely in all 22 games this season for the Blazers and 24-straight games dating back to last season. 
 
Against UWF, she went three-for-six from the dish as all three of her hits left the yard, with a home run in each game against the Argos.  She drove in four and scored five times, amassing a 2.000 slugging percentage for the series.  Additionally, she drew five walks and boasted a .727 on-base average. 
 
Pennington's solo shot in game one of the series last weekend broke a 2-2 deadlock, while her second home run, a two-run blast, came in the top of the seventh inning as VSU trailed 4-1 entering the frame.  The Blazers scored five runs in the inning for a walk-off 6-4 victory.  On Sunday, she belted a solo home run in the sixth inning of a 10-3 victory for the final run of the game.  She has hit a home run in each of the last four games. 
 
She leads the team with a .466 average on 27 of 58 from the plate.  She has a team-high 31 runs scored, while recording three doubles and a national-best 11 home runs. She has 31 RBI for ninth nationally.  Pennington is slugging 1.086 for eight nationally, has walked 21 times and been hit three times for a .622 on base average for 17^th nationally. 
 
The Blazer Spotlight Podcast is in its second season and is produced by Assistant Professor of Digital Production, Dr. Colin Walker, and hosted by Assistant Athletic Director for Development, Matt Malone.
 
In 2019-20, Malone and Dr. Walker brought The Blazer Spotlight Podcast to life and won Best of Competition 2020 Broadcast Education Association Faculty Sports Radio Competition for the episode featuring VSU head women's soccer coach Stephen Andrew.  This week's episode is the 15th of the 2020-21 season, and seventh of 2021, while the 2019-20 season had a total of 23 episodes featuring numerous Blazer coaches, student-athletes and more.