VALDOSTA, Ga.- Senior pitcher Samantha Richards was named to the 2023 Division 2 Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) South Region Second Team. This is Richards third season receiving recognition from the D2CCA as she was previously named South Region Pitcher of the Year in both 2021 and 2022.
 
This Season, Richards earned GSC First Team All-GSC honors for the third-straight season as well as NFCA Second team. Richards finished the season 25-10 with a 2.64 ERA in 230.1 innings of work.  She has appeared in 44 contests with 33 starts and 31 complete games, along with throwing seven shutouts and has registered three saves.  Richards has allowed 206 hits, 101 runs – 87 earned, walked 48 and fanned 236 as teams are hitting .237 against her.
 
The Alpharetta, Ga. native finished the season as the GSC leader in strikeouts (226), wins (24), innings pitched (215), shutouts (7), and saves (3). Nationally, Richards is first in complete games (29), third in games started (30) and third in pitching appearances (41). Also, of note, Richards current career total of 836 strikeouts ranks fifth best in GSC career strikeouts.
 
For her career at Valdosta State, Richards has been a standout posting 846 strikeouts for a historical-first place at VSU. Her 85 career wins mark the most in program history and her 140 appearances are first in Valdosta State softball history. Her 106 game starts are also first in Blazer softball history.