Andrew Grimm PLAYERS OF THE YEAR — Madonna's Madi Owens, left, Big Red's Sadie Edwards, center, and Weir High's Eliza Utt, right, were each named the OVAC Player of the Year in their class after strong seasons.

The OVAC announced the softball Players of the Year and three local players were among those receiving the honor.

Madonna junior standout Madi Owens is the conference Player of the Year in Class 1A, Weir High senior two-way standout Eliza Utt is the Player of the Year in Class 4A and Big Red senior and program record holder Sadie Edwards is the Player of the Year in Class 5A.

OWENS

Owens was one of the top hitters in the state of West Virginia in any class in leading Madonna to another 20-win season and finishing as OVAC and Region 1 runners up.

She hit a dazzling .605 this season with 46 hits, 55 RBIs, 11 doubles, five triples and 15 homers, which were a program record.

Her batting average ranked tied for fifth in the state, her 15th homers were the most in the state, she led the state in slugging percentage (1.474) and was third in the state in RBIs.

Owens has another year for the Blue Dons to add her already record-setting career.

UTT

Utt was a workhorse in the circle for the Red Riders and one of their top threats with the bat, helping Weir High finish as OVAC runners up, Region 1 champions and make their second-straight state tournament appearance.

She went 17-8 in the circle with a 1.82 ERA, 178 strikeouts and just 18 walks in 26 appearances. She pitched 142 of the Red Riders 154 innings this season.

At the plate, Utt led the team with a .525 batting average, was second on the team with 42 hits, had a team-high 39 RBIs, four doubles and two homers.

She is signed to play collegiately at Salem University. She will also play in the OVAC All-Star Game next week.

EDWARDS

Edwards leaves Big Red as the most powerful bat in the program’s history, holding both the single season and career marks for home runs.

This season, she led Steubenville with a .551 batting average, 38 hits, 26 RBIs, 10 doubles, three triples and nine homers.

She also had an ERA of 2.00 in a limited role in the circle for Big Red.

Edwards is signed to continue her career at the Division I level in college with Akron University.