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Byers sisters team up for Pioneers

CANTON — Malone University sophomore catcher Bailey Byers and her sister, freshman pitcher Kelsey Byers, have each been named to the All-Midwest Region Second Team by the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA).

The D2CCA awards are voted on by sports information directors from within the Midwest Region. Bailey and Kelsey, both West Branch High School graduates, are the first Pioneer softball players to earn All-Region honors since 2014.

The Byers sisters led the Pioneers to a Great Midwest Athletic Conference Tournament berth and a 23-17 overall record, marking Malone’s highest win total since 2002 and tying for the third-most victories in program history.

Bailey Byers started all 40 games for the Pioneers, including 39 behind the plate. The G-MAC first-team selection registered an impressive .453 (63-of-139) batting average with 12 doubles, three triples, and a single-season school-record 13 home runs. She scored 30 runs, drove in 38 and stole two bases while recording a .971 fielding percentage with 30 assists as a catcher. She also concluded the year with a .480 on-base percentage and broke the program’s single-season record for slugging percentage at .863. She is the Pioneers’ career leader with 21 home runs.

Kelsey Byers, a right-hander pitcher, was voted to the G-MAC first team and the conference’s Freshman of the Year. Kelsey compiled a 20-9 record with a 2.20 ERA and 180 strikeouts in 191 innings pitched, breaking the Malone single-season records for wins and strikeouts

Among all freshmen in NCAA Division II this spring, Kelsey currently ranks third in strikeouts and fifth in wins.

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