Indianapolis, Ind. – Youngstown State senior Kennedy Dean has been named the Under Armour Horizon League Softball Player of the Week, the league announced on Monday.

This marks Dean's second career weekly honor and the first this season, and it is the third time this year a Youngstown State player has won the award. Dean was also named the player of the week on April 23, 2024.

Junior Tai Turner earned the award on March 2, and senior Emma Gilkerson was tabbed player of the week on March 30.

Dean led the Penguins to a 3-2 record last week, including a three-game sweep over IU Indy, and YSU clinched the regular-season championship and No. 1 in the 2026 Horizon League Softball Championship.

She batted .368 (7-for-19) on the week with three runs scored, two doubles, three home runs and 11 runs batted in. She went 3-for-4 with two doubles against the Golden Flashes on April 21.

Dean hit three three-run home runs against the Jaguars en route to the series sweep. Her first three-run home run came when the Penguins were down to their final out and trailed 11-8 in game one of the series.

Dean leads the Penguins with a .367 batting average and has 13 doubles, two triples, 12 home runs and a single-season record 65 runs batted in. She is just the fourth player in school              history to hit at least 12 home runs in a season, and she boasts an OPS of 1.189 and a slugging percentage of .748, which currently ranks third on the single-season list.

Youngstown State closes out the regular season with a three game series at Oakland, May 1-2, in Rochester, Mich.