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GCU'S SMITH, UMKC'S KELLEY NAMED WAC ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Grand Canyon's Shea Smith and Missouri-Kansas City's Katie Kelley have been named the Western Athletic Conference Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for March 14-20. This is the first-ever honor Smith and the second of the season (first pitcher) and sixth of her career (four hitter, two pitcher) for Kelley.
Smith, a freshman shortstop from Waddle, Ariz., hit .533 (8-of-15) with two runs scored and three RBIs at the Easton Tournament in Fullerton, Calif., last week. She posted a .533 slugging percentage and a .625 on-base percentage with a hit in four of five games, including a 4-for-4 game against UNLV. She also recorded hits against No. 6 Alabama and No. 13 Oklahoma and was responsible for the lone RBI against the Sooners. In the team's shutout victory over UNLV, Smith was perfect on the night going 4-for-4 with two runs and one RBI. She currently leads the WAC in batting average (.430), on-base percentage (.523), runs (36) and doubles (12).
Kelley, a senior from Coweta, Okla., went 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in two appearances last week, holding opponents to a .111 batting average. She gave up just four hits over 11.0 innings, striking out 10. Kelley recorded a season-high seven strikeouts in a complete-game shutout victory over Saint Louis, allowing just two hits in the contest. She also came in for a relief appearance against No. 17 Minnesota, down 2-0, and pitched four innings of shutout ball, striking out three batters and allowing just two hits.
Other Hitter of the Week nominees included: CSU Bakersfield's Sydney Raeber hit .417 with a double, a stolen base and two RBIs over four games ... Kendra Leach of Missouri-Kansas City hit .556 with a triple and two RBIs over three games last week ... NM State's Amy Bergeson hit .400 with four walks over six games last week ... Paige Bouska of Seattle U hit .474 with a pair of doubles and two RBIs in five games last week.
Other Pitcher of the Week nominees included: CSU Bakersfield's Amber Mills went 1-0 with a 0.84 ERA and four strikeouts in two appearances last week ... Taylor Nowlin of Grand Canyon posted a 2.72 ERA and went 2-0 with a save and 19 strikeouts over 18.0 innings last week.
CSUB SCORES EIGHT RUNS IN INNING FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2012
CSU Bakersfield scored a season-high 10 runs against Santa Clara on March 20. The bulk of CSUB's runs in that game came in a single inning, as the ‘Runners posted an eight-spot in the third inning. It was the most runs in an inning for CSUB since the team scored eight in an inning on Maine in 2012.
GCU HAS 16 HITS AGAINST UNLV, 10 VS. DePaul
Last weekend at the Easton Tournament, Grand Canyon posted 16 hits against UNLV and 10 vs. DePaul. The Lopes have now had 10 or more hits in 16 of 33 games this season. GCU had a season-high 23 hits in the season opener against UMBC.
NM STATE'S FINAU NAMED NFCA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
NM State's Fiana Finau garnered Louisville/Slugger National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division I Player of the Week honors for March 7-13. Finau hit .579 (11-for-19) with three doubles, three home runs and 13 RBIs over a six-game stretch last week. The Chula Vista, Calif., native slugged 1.211, registered a .600 on-base percentage and scored five runs. She went 3-for-3 with a double, a home run and four RBIs in a win over Rio Grande rival New Mexico. The senior slugger stroked a game-winning two-run home run against Maine and went 3-for-4 with a double and four RBIs versus East Carolina. Finau recorded a hit in five of six contests and put together four multi-hit games. The WAC Hitter of the Week posted two hits with a double against USF, while scoring twice and knocking in two with a long ball versus Detroit.
SEATTLE U'S LARKINS HAS EIGHT OF 10 SEATTLE U WINS
Seattle U freshman pitcher Andie Larkins has earned eight of the Redhawks' 10 wins in the circle this season. Larkins has earned the two Seattle U shutouts thus far this season.
NM STATE'S ADAMS LEADS NATION IN SACRIFICE FLIES
NM State senior Emma Adams currently leads the nation with four sacrifice flies this season. Teammate Kelsey Horton and Seattle U's Maddy Kristjanson are tied for 11th with three.
GRAND CANYON'S OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
Through 33 games this season, Grand Canyon is outscoring its opponents 217 to 128. The Lopes' largest margin of victory is 18 runs, with one 10-run victory, one nine-run win and seven victories by eight runs. Grand Canyon has also posted seven shutouts.
NM STATE'S NEW EMPHASIS ON STOLEN BASES
NM State currently leads the WAC with 66 stolen bases, more than twice the number of the second-place team in that category, Utah Valley (27). The Aggies surpassed last year's total of 56 stolen bases in just 25 games this season.
UVU'S SMITH SETS PROGRAM STEALS RECORD
With her fourth stolen base of the season in the third inning of the Mary Nutter Classic finale against Binghamton on Feb. 21, Utah Valley senior Morgan Smith became the program's all-time leader in stolen bases with 41. Smith, who also holds the school record for all-time triples with 11, passed Meghan Yocom's (2008-2011) previous UVU record of 40. Smith is now 47-for-53 for her career in stolen bases.
THIRTEEN OF NM STATE'S 20 VICTORIES BY RUN RULE
Of NM State's 20 victories this season, 13 have come by run rule. The Aggies have won six games by 10 runs, two games by nine runs and five games by eight runs, and have posted five shutouts this season.
GCU'S NOWLIN THROWS TWO NO-HITTERS, COMBINES FOR THIRD
Grand Canyon's Taylor Nowlin pitched her second no-hitter of the season on Feb. 19 against Utah State, only allowing only one base runner via a walk and striking out five. The junior also threw a no-hitter in a five-inning win over Loyola Marymount on Feb. 14 and combined with Bailey Bergman to no-hit UMBC in the season opener on Feb. 12.
CSUB'S RAEBER TIES PROGRAM DIVISION I STRIKEOUT RECORD
CSU Bakersfield senior Sydney Raeber recorded a program Division I single-game-tying 10 strikeouts in a complete-game victory over UC Davis on Valentine's Day. She only walked two batters.
NMSU'S HORTON HITS THREE HOMERS IN FIRST FOUR AT BATS
NM State freshman Kelsey Horton opened her career as an Aggie with three home runs in her first four at-bats. Her first at-bat was a grand slam in the bottom of a nine-run first inning for the Aggies on Feb. 12.
NM STATE PICKED TO WIN 2016 WAC TITLE
In a preseason vote of the six WAC softball coaches, who could not vote for their own team, NM State was selected as the preseason favorite to win the title.
The Aggies took the top spot in the preseason poll with 25 points and five first-place votes. Grand Canyon was picked second with 20 points and the other first-place vote, edging out CSU Bakersfield in third place with 18 points. UMKC was fourth with 11 points, followed by Seattle U and Utah Valley with nine and seven points, respectively.
PRESEASON ALL-WAC TEAM
NM State senior utility player Fiana Finau was selected as the Preseason Player of the Year and Missouri-Kansas City's Katie Kelley was selected as the Preseason Pitcher of the Year in a vote of the league's six head coaches, who could not vote for their own players.
NM State placed the most players on the Preseason All-WAC team with six, while Grand Canyon had three.
Joining Finau and Kelley on the Preseason All-WAC Team are Aggies Emma Adams, Karysta Donisthorpe, Brennalyn Nakamura, Haley Nakamura and Rachel Rodriguez; Grand Canyon's Brittany Medina, Taylor Nowlin and Camree Wartman; CSU Bakersfield's Adrianna Cardoza; and Seattle U's Paige Bouska and Isabella Geronimo.
SEATTLE U TO HOST 2016 WAC TOURNAMENT
Seattle U will host the 2016 WAC Softball Tournament. The five eligible teams will advance to the double-elimination tournament, which will be held at Logan Field May 12-14. This is the second time in the last three years the Redhawks have hosted the event, as they did so in 2014.
RETURNING ALL-CONFERENCE PLAYERS
Of the 13 first team All-WAC players from last year, five return for the 2016 season, including Missouri-Kansas City's Brooke Parker, NM State's Fiana Finau and Haley Nakamura, Seattle U's Isabella Geronimo and Utah Valley's Brittney Vansway.
Eleven of the second team All-WAC selections return for 2016, including four from Grand Canyon (Bianca Boling, Brittany Medina, Taylor Nowlin and Camree Wartman). Also returning are Julea Cavazos and Alex Simmons of CSU Bakersfield, Utah Valley's Morgan Smith and Jaylen Watson, UMKC's Katie Kelley, NM State's Karysta Donisthorpe and Seattle U's Paige Bouska.