VALDOSTA – Caitlyn Calhoun may have concluded her time delivering screaming rise balls, but the storied career of the Hamilton, Ohio Blazer softball standout isn’t over just yet. Calhoun represents one of 10 student-athletes that make up the league’s 20th annual “Top Ten” Award winners, as announced by the Gulf South Conference office on Monday.
Calhoun, who practically rewrote the Valdosta State softball record books with six career no-hitters, 33 career shutouts, and 574 career strikeouts, makes her first appearance on the “Top Ten” list, which features the top five female and top five males student-athletes in the conference. Of the ten honorees, one female and one male will be selected as the winner of the prestigious Commissioner’s Trophy, an honor Courtney Albritton secured during the last two seasons in succession to Morgan Johnson, who won the award twice as a Valdosta State softball player in both 2012 and 2013.
“My dad has always been big on encouraging me to do what I need to do for my team and to do what I need to do to help my team be successful,” said the two-time GSC Pitcher of the Year on Friday. “That mentality has helped me not to focus on myself and to just go out there and play, and because of that, sometimes it surprises me when it all comes together after the fact and someone else thinks that I’m good at [softball]. It’s mind-blowing, honestly.”
A host of community service projects and an impressive academic career have put the finishing touches on Calhoun’s time at VSU. She maintained a 3.76 GPA as a major in early childhood and special education before graduating in May, and spent countless hours, both alone and with teammates, participating in activities such as reading to children, conducting camps in the summer, and helping to host blood drives.
“My experience with community service was one of the things that helped me realize that I could be a teacher and work with kids all of the time,” added Calhoun. “Having the opportunity in college to read to children and work with them in their P.E. classes solidified in my mind that this career path was the right choice for me.”
As a “Top Ten” award winner, Calhoun will travel to the Sandestin Beach Resort in Destin, Fla. to attend the GSC’s Annual Awards Banquet, where the conference will announce the 2016 Commissioner’s Trophy winner. The event will take place at 6:30 p.m. CT on Thursday, June 2, and can be viewed in its entirety via a live stream. A “Top Ten” picture album is also available on the GSC’s facebook page.
The “Top Ten” are selected with the assistance of an advisory committee representing the ADs, SWAs, SIDs, FARs and Presidents from randomly selected GSC schools, which makes a recommendation to the Commissioner, who has the final decision. The awards are given based on athletic, academic, and extracurricular achievement during the 2015-16 season.
