One of Florida softball’s best hitters in program history is joining the athletic department’s most prestigious club.
Kelsey Stewart was selected as the latest member of the UF Athletic Hall of Fame on Monday, May 4. She becomes the second member announced for the Class of 2026, joining gymnastics legend Bridget Sloan. Both Stewart and Sloan were first ballot selectees.
Stewart was given the news on a FaceTime with head coach Tim Walton and pitching coach Francesca Enea, a UF legend herself.
In a statement, Stewart said the best decision she made was to attend UF, and the hall of fame induction is the “cherry on top.”
“I bought into the university and Coach Walton. Coach Walton was the main reason I chose Florida and from there I became a two-time National Champion, an SEC Champion, an Olympian and a professional softball player,” Stewart said.
A native of Wichita, Kansas, Stewart played for the Gators from 2013-2016 and graduated as a true program legend. She still holds the all-time record for career hits (357), triples (29), runs scored (259) and total bases (509) and the single season record for hits (102) and triples (29).
She became the first Gator to be named SEC Player of the Year in 2015. That was the second straight year she was a National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) First Team All-American.
It was also the second year in a row she lifted a national championship trophy. In 2021, Stewart won a Silver Medal in the Tokyo Olympics as a member of Team USA.
Stewart joins eight other softball players to be inducted, many of whom were a member of those iconic title squads. They include Chelsey Sakizzie, Jenny Gladding, Stacey Nelson, Michelle Moultrie, Kelsey Brudert, Enea, Hannah Rogers and Lauren Haeger.
Stewart will be celebrated on Friday, October 9, prior to the Florida football game vs. South Carolina.
Noah Ram covers Florida Gators athletics and Gainesville-area high school sports for The Gainesville Sun, GatorSports.com and the USA TODAY Network. Contact him at nram@usatodayco.com. Follow him on X @Noah_ram1 and on Instagram @Ramreporter.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida softball legend Kelsey Stewart selected to UF Athletics Hall of Fame
Reporting by Noah Ram, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
