GCSU Athletics took over the Peach Belt Conference Player of the Week awards for the week of March 22, as shortstop Emily Hobbs took home the softball honors and outfielder Luke Boone claimed the baseball honors.
Hobbs, a senior, one of four on the team, is from Ochlocknee, Georgia and helped GCSU softball in five contests during that week, splitting a pair of games against No. 18 Francis Marion University and winning two of three games against the University of South Carolina-Beaufort (USCB).
“She’s one who does everything the right way,” said Brittany Johnson, head coach of the GCSU softball team. “She leads by example, works extremely hard at her craft, gives it everything she has each and every day, and others follow behind that.”
In the games, Hobbs collected eight hits in her 14 at-bats, leading to a .571 batting average. Her single extra-base hit came in the form of a home run, which came in the final game against USCB, and she drove in five runs and scored four times.
“I felt that I was seeing the ball well during my performances at Francis Marion and USCB,” Hobbs said. “I had been struggling and found ways to get on base by drag bunts or beating out ground balls. This helped me gain some confidence back until I started hitting the ball hard again.”
In her contests since the award, Hobbs has kept up offensive performances, collecting nine hits in 21 at-bats in her last eight games for a .429 batting average, driving in seven runs, and hitting another home run, this time in a win against Flagler College.
Hobbs has also shown an impressive amount of discipline at the plate, ranking ninth in the conference in walks and striking out only four times on the year. She’s not afraid to play for the team’s victory, tied for seventh in sacrifice bunts this season.
“I have really tried to stay simple in the box,” Hobbs said. “I have focused on telling myself to see the ball big. With that focus in mind, I am able to be a lot more selective in the box.”
GCSU softball’s next opponent is Clark Atlanta University, with a doubleheader home contest Tuesday, April 7, with the first game at 3 p.m. and the nightcap shortly after at 5 p.m.
“The mind is a powerful thing when it comes to being in the box,” Hobbs said. “I am working on my mindset and staying confident in myself to help guide the rest of the season.”
Boone, a junior from Richmond Hill, Georgia, and a transfer from South Georgia State, provided a solid bat as GCSU baseball took down the University of Mount Olive before winning the first game against Augusta University, then falling in the series-finale doubleheader.
“Luke has some really good inner confidence in himself,” said Jeff Pelkey, head coach of the GCSU baseball team. “He holds himself to a very high standard, and he’s a hard worker. He wants to do well.”
In the contests, Boone managed nine hits in 19 at-bats, resulting in a .474 batting average, but it was his gap-to-gap hitting approach that truly impressed the conference. In the games, Boone collected four doubles, driving in eight RBI, and scored twice himself.
“I had been kind of struggling with my approach at the plate leading up to those games,” Boone said. “My focus was not chasing pitches that aren’t in my spot that I’m looking for with less than two strikes and being able to work counts better.”
Since the collection of his award, Boone has entered a bit of a slump, which may also be a big reason for the Bobcats’ most recent losing slide. Yet, with his mechanics and trust in himself at the plate, it can be expected that he steers out of his skid soon.
“Every swing he takes, he’s not overanalyzing,” Pelkey said. “His at-bats have been really great, and whenever he’s up there, he’ll make sure he gets the pitch he wants to hit.”
This is not Boone’s only Peach Belt Conference Player of the Week award, either, as he took home the honors on March 2nd, a week in which he shared a Peach Belt Conference award with teammate Keaton Prior, who won the Pitcher of the Week award.
“Once I got on campus and got to know Coach Pelkey and his staff, I knew right away that everything would work, and I have loved it this year,” Boone said.
GCSU baseball finishes a long road trip with a single game against Southern Wesleyan University on Wednesday, April 8, at 5 p.m. at Dr. C. Keith Conor Field.