DENVER –
Fresno State’s Haley Gilleland and New Mexico State’s Alex Newman have been named the Verizon Western Athletic Conference Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for Feb. 21-27. This is the first-ever honor for both.
Gilleland, a senior shortstop from Fresno, Calif., went 5-for-11 (.455) with three runs, a pair of doubles, five RBI and two stolen bases as the Bulldogs went 3-1 on the week. In a 4-3 win over No. 19 Oklahoma State, she hit the game-winning two-run double and scored on a suicide squeeze in the Dogs’ 7-5 win over UMass. With her two steals on the week, she improved to 5-for-5 this season and moved her Bulldog career record to 64, good for 10th all-time in the WAC.
Newman, a sophomore from Rio Linda, Calif., went 4-0 on the week with 16 strikeouts in 19.0 innings of work. She posted a 1.47 ERA, allowing just four earned runs. In a 6-4 win over rival UTEP, she came into the game in the bottom of the first with the Aggies down 4-1 and threw 7.0 innings in relief to pick up the win. In a 12-10 extra-inning win over Bradley, she entered in the top of the eighth and got NM State out of a jam, forcing two outs. Against Texas State, Newman went the distance for a complete-game shutout, allowing the Bobcats just four hits in the game. She closed out the week with a win over North Dakota to move her season record to 8-0.
Other Hitter of the Week nominees included: Boise State’s Tazz Weatherly hit .500 with a double and two RBI on the week … Melissa Gonzalez of Hawai’i hit .400 with eight hits and six RBI on the week … Nevada’s Megan Fincher hit .417 with a .563 on-base percentage on the week … Hoku Nohara of New Mexico State hit .444 with four doubles and three home runs on the week.
Other Pitcher of the Week nominees included: Fresno State’s Mackenzie Oakes went 2-0 on the week with a pair of complete-game victories … Stephanie Ricketts of Hawai’i went 2-2 with a 0.78 ERA on the week.