DENVER – New Mexico State’s Staci Rodriguez and Seattle U’s Richelle Ashburn have been named the Western Athletic Conference Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for April 8-14. This is the second honor of the season and her career for Rodriguez and the first-ever honor for Ashburn.
Rodriguez, a sophomore outfielder from Paramount, Calif., led New Mexico State to a 4-1 record last week, including a sweep of UTSA and a win over No. 17 Arizona. She hit .615 (8-for-13) with a double, three home runs and seven RBI on the week. She posted a 1.385 slugging percentage and a .688 on-base percentage. Rodriguez had a hit in each conference game and went 3-for-3 in game two of the Aggies’ mid-week series against the Wildcats. Her three home runs last week extended her season total to 16, which ties for third in the NM State single-season record books..
Ashburn, a junior from Post Falls, Idaho, went 2-0 with a 0.58 ERA and seven strikeouts last week as the Redhawks swept the series against Utah State. She pitched two complete games, allowing just one earned run in 12 innings of work. Ashburn recorded her fourth shutout of the year in game three and has now thrown 11 complete games this season.
Other Hitter of the Week nominees included: Louisiana Tech’s Amanda Krueger hit .417 with a pair of doubles ... Markesha Collins of San Jose State hit .571 with a doubles, a triple, two home runs and three RBI ... Seattle U’s Isabella Geronimo hit .700 with two doubles, a triple and four RBI ... Britnea Barilli of UT Arlington hit .500 with two doubles ... Texas State’s Kelli Baker hit .429 with three RBI.
Other Pitcher of the Week nominees included: New Mexico State’s Alex Newman went 4-0 with a 2.14 ERA ... Amanda Pridmore of San Jose State went 2-0 with a 0.98 ERA and 14 strikeouts on the week ... UT Arlington’s Teri Lyles went 1-1 with a 1.40 ERA and 10 strikeouts last week ... Ashley Wright of Texas State went 1-1 with a 0.57 ERA and eight strikeouts last week.