WICHITA, Kan. – Wichita State senior shortstop Sydney McKinney has been named one of 25 finalists for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, it was announced Wednesday morning.

A top 10 finalist a season ago, McKinney is once again putting the nation on notice. The Norborne, Mo., native leads the country in batting average (.544) and hits (86), and ranks top 10 nationally in runs (61), triples (7), on base percentage (.583) and total bases (122). McKinney has cracked the NCAA top 10 all-time hits list with 361 career hits. She is a three-time American Athletic Conference Player of the Week and was the NFCA National Player of the Week back in February.

McKinney was named to the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List prior to the season before making the cut at 25. Considered the most distinguished individual honor in Division I college softball, the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award recognizes outstanding athletic achievement by Division I female collegiate softball players from across the country.

Highlighting the 2023 Top 25 Finalists are four fifth-year/graduate students, eight seniors, 10 juniors, one sophomore and two freshman spread across 16 NCAA Division I universities and seven athletic conferences. The Southeastern Conference (SEC) leads in representation with six member-schools, followed by the Pac-12 with three, American Coast Conference (ACC) and Big 12 with two apiece, and the American Athletic Conference (AAC), ASUN and Big 10 each with one. The Finalists display a wide variety of talent, consisting of 12 position players and 13 pitchers – three of which also shine offensively.

The Top 25 Finalists will be narrowed down to 10 athletes on May 3, followed by the Top 3 Finalists set to be released on May 17. The 2023 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be revealed prior to the Women’s College World Series, which is scheduled to take place June 1-9 at the Softball Capital of the World®.

Paired with the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, USA Softball is also in its 21st season of presenting the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll, which is released every Tuesday throughout the regular season. Follow along with Division I NCAA Softball all season long at USASoftball.com.