Emily Woodruff McCord

Emily Ann Woodruff McCord was born on December 3, 1995, in Augusta, Georgia, to Paul and Kathy Woodruff.  Paul is a retired teacher and coach at Albertville High School, and Kathy is the Chief Nursing Officer at Marshall Medical Centers.  Emily has an older sister Hannah Wester, who is a physical therapist in New Orleans, and a twin brother Ty Woodruff, who is the director of video for the Michigan State University football program.

Emily played soccer, volleyball, basketball, and softball in the Albertville Recreation Department’s rec leagues as a youth.  At Alabama Avenue Middle School, now Albertville Middle School, she participated in volleyball and basketball.  She continued playing basketball through her junior year.  As a 7th grade student at A.M.S., she was selected for the varsity softball team in the spring of 2009.  Emily’s dad Paul was the long-time coach of the Lady Aggies.  He recognized her talent and inserted her into the starting lineup.

Emily had six stellar seasons as a member of the Albertville High School softball team.  She was a career .456 hitter, amassing 379 hits, including 91 doubles and 34 homers, all from the leadoff spot in the batting order.  She scored 329 runs in her career and stole 205 bases.  All of those marks were in the top ten all-time in AHS history at the time of her graduation.  Albertville High enjoyed great success during Emily’s time on the team.  They won five Marshall County Tournament titles and five area championships.  Additionally, the Lady Aggies made three A.H.S.A.A State Tournament appearances in 2009, 2012, and in 2014, where they played to a 3rd place finish.

The individual accolades rolled in for Emily throughout her high school career.  She was a 4-time Alabama Sportswriters Association 1st-team All-State selection.  She made All-Area and All-Marshall County 5 times, including being named the Marshall County Most Valuable Player twice. She was chosen 1st Team Huntsville Times Elite and 1st Team All-Gadsden Times in 2013 and 2014.  Her senior year, Emily was chosen for the AHSAA North/South All-Star Game and was named a MaxPreps All-American.  She was the 2013 Huntsville Times Hitter of the Year.

In addition to her high school play, Emily also played travel softball with the Birmingham Vipers.  Her team finished 3rd at the 2012 ASA 16U National Tournament, 3rd at the 2013 ASA 18U National Tournament, and 2nd in the 2014 ASA 18U National Tournament.

Emily graduated from Albertville High School in 2014 and signed a softball scholarship with her dream school, Jacksonville State University, to play for legendary Head Coach Jana McGinnis.  Emily led the Gamecocks to Ohio Valley Conference regular season championships in 2016 and 2017 and to the OVC Tournament title in 2016, 2017, and 2018.  The Gamecocks made three straight NCAA Regional appearances from 2016-18, advancing to the regional championship game in the 2016 Auburn Regional and the 2018 Tallahassee Regional.

Emily ranks among the Jax State career leaders in stolen bases, at-bats, hits, runs, doubles, and RBIs.  She is a career .315 hitter at the Division I level and hit over .300 all four years in college.  She also slugged 14 home runs and 32 doubles.  She also was known for her clutch hitting.  She hit .406 in her career with two outs and .393 with two outs and runners in scoring position.  Coach McGinnis calls Emily one of the best defenders that ever played for her thanks to her highlight-reel plays in centerfield.  Emily recorded 226 career putouts and 20 outfield assists as a Gamecock.  Emily played in all 228 games as a Gamecock, starting 227 of them.

Just as in high school, Emily was highly recognized during her collegiate career.  She was a 4-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection, including being named to the 1st team in 2016.  She made the OVC All-Tournament Team in 2018.  She was an Academic All-OVC performer and a 2016 All-District selection while juggling being a student-athlete with Jax State’s demanding nursing program.  Emily graduated Magna Cum Laude from J.S.U. in 2018 with her in B.S. in Nursing.

On June 14, 2019, Emily married Cass McCord, who is the assistant director of video for the University of Alabama football program.  They have two children.  Son Parker is 2 years old, and daughter Millie Kate was born this past April.  Emily currently works as a Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner at Dermatology Care of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and works in emergency medicine at DCH Regional Medical Center.