BIRMINGHAM, Ala.  – No. 23/24 Tennessee softball duo Ashley Rogers and Chelsea Seggern were named to the 2021 Preseason All-SEC Team as announced by the conference on Thursday.

The Preseason All-SEC Softball Team is voted on by the league’s head coaches and consists of a minimum of 14 players. Each SEC head coach voted for five infielders, four outfielders, three pitchers, one catcher and one designated player/utility. No ties were broken.

The selection marks the second consecutive season the pair were named to the preseason team.

A redshirt senior, Seggern returns after co-leading the Lady Vols along with Ally Shipman with a .403 overall batting average, seven doubles and a pair of triples, while recording 25 hits. The Thrall, Texas, native individually ranked sixth in the nation in hit-by-pitches per game (0.47) after being pegged nine times at the plate and moved to seventh all-time in career HBP (28). Seggern also ranked 18th in the nation with a .560 on-base percentage and tied for 37th with a .863 slugging percentage.

Notably, the anticipated return of junior and 2019 NFCA All-Region pitcher Rogers has garnered some deserved respect. Despite UT’s ace missing the shortened 2020 season, where she was temporarily sidelined due to injury, Rogers’ freshman campaign where she ranked seventh in the conference with 1.94 ERA and second in the conference with 209 strikeouts remains impressive. The Athens, Tenn., native was scheduled to return to the field last season for Lady Vols’ SEC opening series at Texas A&M, but the season was postponed and ultimately cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Last week, the Lady Vols were projected to finish fourth in the SEC by the coaches. The Orange and White return 91 percent of its scoring and 87 percent of its hitting from 2020.

UT opens its season on Feb. 12 in Conway, S.C. for the Kickin’ Chicken Classic against Ohio.

For more information on Tennessee Softball, follow the team on Twitter and Instagram @Vol_Softball and on Facebook @TennesseeSoftball.
2021 Preseason All-SEC Team

Braxton Burnside, Arkansas

Charla Echols, Florida

Kendyl Lindaman, Florida

Fa Leilua, Mississippi State

Chelsea Seggern, Tennessee

Alexis Mack, Alabama

KB Sides, Alabama

Hannah McEwen, Arkansas

Aliyah Andrews, LSU

Cayla Kessinger, Missouri

Montana Fouts, Alabama

Autumn Storms, Arkansas

Ali Kilponen, LSU

Shelby Wickersham, LSU

Ashley Rogers, Tennessee

Mia Davidson, Mississippi State

Shelby Sunseri, LSU

-UT Athletics