Carbondale Reporter

The Southern Illinois University softball team has finalized its 2024 recruiting class with the addition of pitcher McKenzie Newcomb, a transfer from Samford University.

Newcomb joins Charley Pursley, Emily Williams, and Maleah Blomenkamp as the newest members of the Saluki roster.

Newcomb, originally from Meridianville, Alabama, was ranked sixth among all pitchers in the transfer portal by College Sports Evaluation (CSE). Over three seasons at Samford, Newcomb achieved a record of 46-24 with a 2.20 ERA in 92 appearances. The incoming senior struck out 435 batters and walked just 65 over a total of 476.2 innings pitched.

In 2023, Newcomb was named the Southern Conference (SoCon) Pitcher of the Year and earned First Team All-SoCon honors in both 2022 and 2023. She followed this with a Second Team All-SoCon performance in 2024.

Williams arrives at Southern Illinois from Morehead State, where she spent the previous two seasons as a catcher. In 2023, the Louisville, Kentucky native played and started in 44 games, achieving a batting average of .361 with 11 home runs, 34 RBIs, and a .706 slugging percentage.

Williams joined Jackie Lis on the 2023 CSE Freshman All-American Team for her efforts during her first season.

Blomenkamp is an outfielder from Freeburg, Illinois who comes to SIU after spending her freshman season at SIUE. In 2024, Blomenkamp played in 46 games with 19 starts and posted a batting average of .288. The outfielder scored 18 runs and had four RBIs during the year.

Pursley is an incoming junior outfielder from Benton, Kentucky who is transferring from Austin Peay. Over the last two seasons, Pursley has played in 41 games and made 11 starts.

Southern Illinois concluded its season with a record of 44-11 in route to winning its fifth Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title and fifth MVC tournament title.

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