« Softball 2011

Morgan Childers

School
University of South Carolina Upstate
Position
Pitcher
Major
Secondary Education
ERA
0.94
W-L
20-1

Classroom

Childers carries a 3.51 GPA in secondary education. She is a two-time Atlantic-Sun All-Academic selection and a Dean’s List student all three years. She was named the University of South Carolina Upstate Female Student-Athlete of the Year in 2010 and was a nominee for the A-Sun Student-Athlete of the Year.

Character

Childers is a person of high character. She never says no when asked to assist in any project or request for time from the athletic department. She has volunteered for service projects with the knowledge that she has a responsibility to give back as a role model. Her high character makes her a natural leader as well. From day one, Childers has been a leader on the team at Upstate. She is the first to congratulate and cheer for her teammates, while also being the first one to encourage teammates that need it. She knows her accomplishments, but does not flaunt them, always deflecting attention from herself to her teammates, often saying that it is the team that has success and failure, not one person.

Community

In addition to serving as a team captain, Childers has been actively involved on campus and in the community. She served as a member of Upstate’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and has volunteered for campus service projects with Habitat for Humanity and the Spartanburg Miracle League. She also served as a speaker at Boiling Springs Elementary School for their after-school program and a reading mentor at Spartanburg Charter School. The program was designed to introduce young children to accomplished student-athletes who could emphasize character, commitment and leadership. She gives pitching lessons in her free time and has volunteered for a number of community service projects while in high school in her native Kings Mountain, N.C.

Competition

Childers is not only the top pitcher in school history, she is arguably the top player in the history of the program. She broke Upstate’s career strikeouts record midway through her sophomore season and currently owns the career records for victories, strikeouts, shutouts, appearances, complete games, starts and opponent batting average. She is also closing in on many others. Childers had a career year in 2010, leading the A-Sun with 34 victories, 428 strikeouts, 16 shutouts and 37 starts, despite playing with a toe and leg muscle injury that hampered her throughout the season. She ranked in the top eight in the nation in six statistical categories, including second in the nation with a 1.01 ERA and fourth in strikeouts. The 428 strikeouts were the second most in A-Sun history, nine shy of the all-time record. In addition, she led Upstate to the championship game of the A-Sun tournament in the Spartans’ first year of eligibility. Childers is a three-time All-A-Sun selection (two first team nods). She was the A-Sun Pitcher of the Year and Freshman of the Year in 2008, the first time a player had earned both honors in the same year. She has moved into second place on the A-Sun’s all-time victories and strikeouts list as well.