Completed Event: Softball at San Diego State on April 17, 2026 , Win , 12, to, 3 , (5 inn.)
Softball
at San Diego State
W 12-3
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: Taylor Hansen
Fifield wins Kearney Award as WAC's top athlete
7/20/2023 12:00:00 PM | Softball, Paul Coro
Top female conference honor goes to Lopes' national RBIs leader
Kristin Fifield drove in more runs than any softball player in the nation, set Grand Canyon program records, led the Lopes to a second consecutive NCAA regional appearance, earned a Psychology degree and began work on a graduate degree.
One would be hard pressed to find a better student-athlete, and the WAC leaders could not.
Fifield was named this year's Joe Kearney Award winner as the conference's top female student-athlete by a vote of WAC athletic directors. She is the first GCU woman to win the award and the third Lopes student-athlete to do so since GCU joined the WAC in 2013, following basketball player DeWayne Russell (2016-17) and swimmer Mark Nikolaev (2018-19).
"I'm speechless," Fifield said upon learning about the award. "It's an honor to be able to get this award with the amount of female athletes there are in the whole conference. It brings me so much joy to know that everything I've done, all the hard work and time I've put in is showing.
"I know there are probably so many other girls who could have got it, but I have to thank God first just because He's been a huge help in getting me where I am at this point, made me the person I am and built me into the leader I am and the character I have."
Fifield obliterated the field in the national RBIs race last season, knocking in 85 runs to finish 14 ahead of the nation's next-closest player. The El Paso, Texas, native also finished fifth nationally in home runs (21) and seventh nationally in doubles (19) while also leading the WAC in those categories.
After switching from a slap-hitting style when GCU head coach Shanon Hays came aboard before the 2022 season, Fifield continued to increase her batting average while powering up for 35 home runs over the past two seasons. The outfielder crushed the GCU career home run record with 44 and counting.
"What an awesome honor for Kristin and one she certainly deserves," GCU head coach Shannon Hays said. "Fife had a great year this past season, not just on the field but off. She is a super student and also a true leader for our team. The best thing is that we have her one more year, which is huge for her being around our new student-athletes."
With a slugging percentage of .803 last season, Fifield starred for a 47-13 Lopes team that won the WAC Tournament and pulled off one of the greatest upsets in NCAA tournament history by beating No. 2 UCLA 3-2 on May 19 in Los Angeles.
"Kristin will be a huge success after her career here at GCU in whatever she decides to do," Hays said. "Our coaching staff has been very blessed to coach her."
One would be hard pressed to find a better student-athlete, and the WAC leaders could not.Fifield was named this year's Joe Kearney Award winner as the conference's top female student-athlete by a vote of WAC athletic directors. She is the first GCU woman to win the award and the third Lopes student-athlete to do so since GCU joined the WAC in 2013, following basketball player DeWayne Russell (2016-17) and swimmer Mark Nikolaev (2018-19).
"I'm speechless," Fifield said upon learning about the award. "It's an honor to be able to get this award with the amount of female athletes there are in the whole conference. It brings me so much joy to know that everything I've done, all the hard work and time I've put in is showing.
"I know there are probably so many other girls who could have got it, but I have to thank God first just because He's been a huge help in getting me where I am at this point, made me the person I am and built me into the leader I am and the character I have."
Fifield obliterated the field in the national RBIs race last season, knocking in 85 runs to finish 14 ahead of the nation's next-closest player. The El Paso, Texas, native also finished fifth nationally in home runs (21) and seventh nationally in doubles (19) while also leading the WAC in those categories.
After switching from a slap-hitting style when GCU head coach Shanon Hays came aboard before the 2022 season, Fifield continued to increase her batting average while powering up for 35 home runs over the past two seasons. The outfielder crushed the GCU career home run record with 44 and counting."What an awesome honor for Kristin and one she certainly deserves," GCU head coach Shannon Hays said. "Fife had a great year this past season, not just on the field but off. She is a super student and also a true leader for our team. The best thing is that we have her one more year, which is huge for her being around our new student-athletes."
With a slugging percentage of .803 last season, Fifield starred for a 47-13 Lopes team that won the WAC Tournament and pulled off one of the greatest upsets in NCAA tournament history by beating No. 2 UCLA 3-2 on May 19 in Los Angeles.
"Kristin will be a huge success after her career here at GCU in whatever she decides to do," Hays said. "Our coaching staff has been very blessed to coach her."
Players Mentioned
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