Missouri softball racks up SEC honors

Missouri senior outfielder Emily Crane picked up a pair of honors Tuesday when it was revealed that the Southeastern Conference coaches have voted her to the first-team all-conference and all-defensive teams.

Crane, a repeat first-team selection, was among four Tigers honored, along with All-SEC second-team selections Sami Fagan and Taylor Gadbois.

Freshman Regan Nash was chosen for the Freshman All-SEC squad.

Crane, who was chosen as the conference’s top defender in right field for the second straight season, is batting .399 with 16 home runs, 22 steals and 55 RBIs this season.

Entering the SEC Tournament, Crane boasts career-highs this season for homers, RBIs, walks (36), runs scored (57), total bases (126), on-base percentage (.515) and slugging percentage (.855).

Fagan, a senior shortstop, is batting .424 with 11 home runs, 25 steals and 49 RBIs this season. Her .376 career average ranks third in Tigers history.

Gadbois, a senior center fielder, leads the SEC and ranks second nationally with 51 stolen bases. She is batting .400 on the season and her 143 career steals are second in Mizzou history.

Finally, Nash is batting .328 with 18 steals this season.

Missouri, 39-13, is the No. 6 seed for the conference tournament and will play No. 11 seed South Carolina at 11 a.m. Wednesday in Starkville, Miss. The winner plays No. 3 seed Tennessee on Thursday.

The Tigers’ players announced a protest, though they didn’t boycott any games, before Saturday’s regular-season contest with the Gamecocks. The team is unhappy with a university investigation into coach Ehren Earleywine.

This story was originally published May 10, 2016 at 1:50 PM with the headline "Missouri softball racks up SEC honors."