MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama softball senior pitcher Farish Beard was named Tuesday as one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award, which honors student-athletes who excel both on and off the field.
About the Award
CLASS stands for “Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School.” The award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages honorees to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Ballots will be distributed nationwide to media, coaches and fans, who will choose the candidate who best represents excellence in the four C’s: community, classroom, character and competition.
Fan voting is open online through May 11 at seniorCLASSaward.com. The winner will be announced during the 2015 Women’s College World Series.
In the Classroom
Beard carries a 3.4 grade-point average and was named a 2013-14 National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-America Scholar-Athlete. She was also a member of South Alabama’s 2014 team that earned the Sun Belt Conference Team Academic Award with a 3.36 overall GPA.
2015 Season
This season, Beard is 5-2 with a team-best 1.40 ERA. She has struck out 55 and walked 19 while allowing nine earned runs in 45 innings.
A Standout 2014
Beard was a top-25 finalist for the 2014 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award. She was named to the NFCA All-South Region second team and the All-Sun Belt Conference first team.
She led the NCAA in ERA for three weeks and topped the nation in hits allowed per seven innings for two weeks. She finished the season fifth nationally in hits allowed per seven innings (3.40), sixth in ERA (1.23) and ninth in strikeouts per seven innings (9.5).
Beard, a three-time Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week, led the conference in opposing batting average (.141) and strikeouts (224), and allowed the fewest hits (80), runs (40) and doubles (9). She ranked among the top four in the Sun Belt in ERA, innings pitched, strikeouts looking, wins and fewest earned runs, walks, triples and home runs allowed.
Her opponents’ batting average was the second-lowest in a season in program history, and her strikeouts-per-seven-innings ratio was the second-best in school history. Her win and shutout totals were the third-most in a single season by a South Alabama pitcher.
Beard and the Jaguars compete in the Sun Belt Conference under head coach Becky Clark.
