ORLANDO – As announced by Academic All-America earlier this month, the (RV) UCF softball team saw five members selected to the 2023 Academic All-District Softball Team as voted on by College Sports Communicators.
First baseman Shannon Doherty, right-handed pitcher Kaitlyn Felton, and utility players Jada Cody, Savannah Adams and Kennedy Searcy, were all recognized for the combination of their accomplishments on the field and in the classroom, with each producing a GPA of at least 3.50. Accompanying the honor received by each, the five are now eligible for consideration on the CSC Academic All-American ballot, with the results to be announced June 6.
In her fourth season donning the Black and Gold, Doherty enjoyed another strong season at the plate while continuing to provide sure-handed defense at first base. She collected a season-high 38 RBI, surpassing her previous season-best 37 in 2021, and was named to the American Athletic Conference's All-Conference First Team for the first time in her career.
The Coral Springs, Florida, native continued climbing the ranks in the UCF record books, finishing the 2023 slate in fourth place on the UCF all-time home run list with 29, and in sixth place on the all-time RBI list with 126. During the Knights' 13-1 rout of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane April 16, Doherty racked up a career-high six RBI while also producing her second career multi-home run game.
Cody joined Doherty in being named to the AAC's All-Conference First Team in 2023 after recording a solid season during which she hit .301/.403/.538 with 12 doubles, four triples and seven home runs.
The Murrieta, California, native most notably claimed sole possession of second place on the UCF all-time RBI list this season, finishing the campaign with 147 in her four-year career, and enters the 2024 season 66 RBI shy of tying Knights Hall-of-Famer Stephanie Best's 213 mark for the most in program history. Cody also became the third Knight in the history of the program to hit reach the 30-home run mark, and her eight career triples rank tied for sixth-most in program history.
Searcy was also named to the AAC's All-Conference First Team after a standout offensive season during which she hit .439/.522/.474 (25-for-57) with 27 total bases in 18 games in conference play. Her .439 average represented the third-highest mark in the conference, and she was the lone player in The American to swipe at least 10 bases in conference play.
The Jacksonville, Florida, native was also the catalyst for the Knights' comeback win over the Memphis Tigers in the AAC Tournament Semifinals in Tampa, tripling in the bottom of the third inning and scoring the first of seven unanswered runs in UCF's eventual 7-4 win. Searcy hit her second triple in three games in the tournament championship game against Tulsa, driving in a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the second inning.
In her sophomore season with the Knights, Felton set career-bests in a handful of statistical categories, including innings pitched (77.1), appearances (26), starts (13) and strikeouts (73). In her third appearance of the season, she produced a masterful performance against the UMass Minutewomen, recording a career-high 13 strikeouts in her first career seven-inning complete game.
The contest marked the first of four appearances this season that saw Felton tally at least seven strikeouts, including back-to-back outings against Michigan and LMU March 2-3, racking up eight strikeouts in both.
Adams, also in her sophomore season, surpassed numerous career-bests with increased time on the field, the majority of which came as the Knights' designated player. In a season-high 41 games (25 starts), Adams hit .300/.326/.575 (24-for-80) with four doubles and six home runs. She drove in 22 runs and accrued 46 total bases. Her six home runs were also tied for third-most on the team, and she represented one of seven Knights to collect at least 20 RBI.
