Our non-football Players of the Week are Emma Whitfield for Stephens County softball and Alexandra Shalikashvili for Habersham Central volleyball.

EMMA WHITFIELD

For Whitfield, it’s her second Player of the Week award in her career, and she is a one-time Player of the Year as well. The Clemson commit is off to another great start in her senior 2018 season.

She’s 2-1 overall with a 0.53 ERA and 51 strikeouts in just 26.1 innings of work. In her recent outing against North Oconee, Whitfield threw a complete game shutout, striking out 14 batters.

If there’s a weak spot for her, it’s her hitting at the moment. As her coach, Dave Poffenberger explains, she wasn’t getting a chance to hit during travel ball all summer. She’s hitting just .167 with 2 RBI and a double. But it’s early, and the pitching is where she concentrates most anyway, and that part of her game is as good or better than ever!

ALEXANDRA SHALIKASHVILI

The third Shalikashvili to play for head coach Lindsay Herrin, Alexandra has been excellent so far.

Through a handful of games, she’s serving at 96.3% with 8 aces and 100% accuracy.

Shalikashvili, a junior outside hitter, also has 11 digs to her credit and 39 kills (13/match). Her .416 hit percentage is also one of the best in our area at this point in the season.

Feature Photo by David Byargeon