Cady Mae Ammons of Red Oak was named an NJCAA Division II All-American outfielder after emerging as a premier power hitter during her freshman season at Murray State College as the list was announced on Wednesday.

“It really means a lot. I didn’t think I would get it because there are so many great players in the program,” Ammons said. “I probably wouldn’t have gotten it if it weren’t for the team’s success.”

Ammons enjoyed the thrills and challenges this season with MSC (62-3) in a spring that finished with a 3-2 run in the NJCAA DII World Series from May 20-23 in Oxford, Ala.

“It was unreal. Obviously, I went to the state tournament in high school. This was the same type of atmosphere,” she said.

She contributed valuable performances in the NJCAA DII World Series, hitting 6-for-15 with three walks, two home runs and eight runs batted in during the five games.

She sparked the offense with an RBI single and a home run early in the 9-1 win against Iowa Central in the second round. Her second-inning inside-the-park grand slam aided an 18-8 win against Johnson County on May 22 in MSC’s fourth game.

“We lost to Jones, the No. 1 team in the country, and had to play again. We were hungry that night,” Ammons said, adding of her inside-the-park home run, “it definitely started that spark. We weren’t the happiest playing again that night. It made the game a lot more fun.”

Ammons was top-10 in four offensive categories as she hit .540 (10th in NJCAA DII) with a .612 on-base percentage (ninth in NJCAA DII), .960 slugging mark (20th in NJCAA DII), 28 doubles (fourth in NJCAA DII), 13 home runs, 90 runs batted in (seventh in NJCAA DII), 30 walks and 11 steals in 64 games.

That came after she worked to build her hitting ability for the college level, with MSC head coach Aaron Mullens encouraging her to hit for power.

“Growing up, I was more about speed. I am strong, just not as much hitting for power,” she said, expressing that Mullens got her to employ a leg kick in her swing to increase the power in her swing. 

Also, he instructed her in conveying to the pitcher that she will beat that pitcher. She developed the combination of batting stance and mindset to show that winning hitting attitude.

Further, she loved how MSC players worked together and challenged each other.

“When we were at the plate, we would yell at each other, ‘What are you made of?'” she recounted.

She posted a two-home run performance in Game 1 of a doubleheader at Carl Albert State College in Poteau on April 17.

“That was a big one. I was seeing the ball really well that day,” she said.

In the fourth inning of Game 2 against the University of Arkansas-Rich Mountain in Mena, Ark., on April 10, she drew a walk in her last plate appearance of the game. Then, she stole second base and got into a rundown that enabled teammate Brandi Harman to score before she scored in the same play.

Defensively, she learned to take angles at the ball while playing in the outfield after being at third base in high school.

“I got more comfortable coming around to the ball and through the ball,” she said, adding that she was able to make more plays in the gaps and near the foul line.

She plans to keep making plays in the outfield and hitting the ball hard next season with the team planning another run in the World Series with the goal of winning a championship.