Cougar All-American Kate Hogan Transfers to Idaho State University
PHOENIX ---
South Mountain Community College softball infielder Kate Hogan will continue her intercollegiate softball career at NCAA Division I Idaho State University for the upcoming 2023 season. Originally from Tooele, Utah, Hogan earned First Team National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-American honors after a stellar season for the Cougars and head coach Brittney Matta.
Idaho State University is located in Pocatello, Idaho, and competes in the Big Sky Conference. Hogan is the 10th member of the 2022 squad to continue their softball career at a four-year institution in 2023. She also gives Matta and the program its third NCAA Division I transfer since the end of the 2021 campaign, joining Mia Stankiewicz (CSUN) and Alexa Key (Gardner-Webb University).
"Kate has been a key part of our team the last year and will continue to be a standard-setting player for the program. With her being one of the first to sign from out of state, Kate put her trust in me and the Cougar program and fully blossomed here," said Matta. "Not only is she a great athlete, but she is also an even better person and consciously makes good choices. I am excited about Kate's future and cannot wait to watch her thrive for Idaho State."
In 2022, Hogan batted .503 with 87 hits and 62 runs in 56 regular-season games for the Cougars as the squad advanced to the Region I Division II Tournament for the second-straight year.
"Going to SMCC made me a better player because I worked especially hard this past year. Coach Matta pushed me because she saw my potential, and working with her and all the Cougar coaches made me a better player," said Hogan. "I don't think I could have gone straight to Division I straight out of high school. Coming to SMCC was a great step decision because I got a lot of development and playing time, and I think it was a great step between high school and a four-year university."
Hogan added 23 doubles, six triples, 14 home runs, 82 RBIs, 21 walks and 14 stolen bases for SMCC and head coach Brittney Matta during the 2022 regular season. She set a new school single-season record for hits and led SMCC in batting average, doubles, triples, runs, RBIs, on-base percentage (.552) and slugging percentage (.948).
Among all ACCAC players, she finished the regular season ranked second in RBIs, third in doubles, fourth in hits, eighth in runs and ninth in batting average.
She had a pair of games with two home runs and had a season-high five RBIs three times. Hogan recorded a season-high four hits in four games and posted a 20-game hitting streak during March and April. She scored a season-high four runs in a win over Mesa CC and had two doubles in three games.