Huges attacking

By Rich Hardwick
Staff Writer

Georgia College & State University softball player Kristen Hughes is having a record year at third base for the Lady Bobcats.
Hughes started playing softball when she was in third grade. She graduated from Dacula High School in Lawrenceville, Ga where she received All-County honors not only in softball but also in basketball and track. She also earned a Golden Glove Award for her defense. After high school, she attended Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Ga. At ABAC, she earned Third Team All-American honors. She was also a two-time All-Conference player and was named the MVP of the 2001 Junior College State Tournament.
Hughes is having an outstanding year for the Bobcats this year. As of the beginning of this month Hughes is the triple-crown leader of the team. She leads the team in batting average with a .382 in 35 games, 31 runs batted in and a record 9 home runs.
Hughes still feels that she needs to make little changes to improve her game.
“I need to get quicker hands,” said Hughes. “I need to be quicker in the field. I need to get more key hits and more hits with runners in scoring position.”
Hughes has been very good defensively for the Lady Bobcats. She is third on the team in fielding percentage (96.6 percent) with only 4 errors in 35 games started.
Hughes is a big threat in the Lady Bobcats’ line-up. She has been batting third all year and provids some serious offense at the top of the line-up. She is first on the team in slugging percentage (.691) and is third on the team in doubles with 5. She attributes some of her success to her new teammates and coaches.
“We’re like family,” said Hughes. “We go out for team dinners and stuff. The coaches definitely know the game, and they definitely want us to succeed. I have a lot of respect for them.”
The Lady Bobcats record is 22-13 (5-3 in the Peach-Belt Conference). Hughes has stepped forward as the offensive leader for the team, but she feels that the team is doing really well as of late. She looks forward to being one of the players to lead the team into the regional tournament that begins April 19th in Greenwood, SC.
“We got a good team. Our team has come together, and we’ve won some big games,” said Hughes. “Right now we’re trying to get on a roll and win them all. We’re very capable if we click, which we are. The potential of our team is awesome. It’s just fun to be out there and playing.”
Hughes is on pace to break more records for the Lady Bobcats this year. To say that she has adapted nicely to the playing for the Bobcats would be an understatement. Hughes looks to finish this year out strong and to lead the Lady Bobcats to the Peach Belt Conference Championship.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 5 2002. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry