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NM STATE'S CASTRO, GCU'S BERGMAN NAMED WAC ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
NM State's Victoria Castro and Grand Canyon's Bailey Bergman have been named the Western Athletic Conference Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for Feb. 29-March 6. This is the first-ever honor for both.
Castro, a freshman outfielder from Albuquerque, N.M., hit .500 with 10 hits, three doubles, three home runs, seven runs scored and nine RBIs over seven games last week. She posted a 1.100 slugging percentage and a .520 on-base percentage with a hit in all but one game and three multi-hit games. In the nightcap of a mid-week doubleheader against Mount St. Mary's, Castro hit a pair of homers, driving in five runs. She also had a double in a loss to No. 7 Oregon.
Bergman, a junior from Gilbert, Ariz., went 2-0 with a 1.47 ERA in four appearances last week, allowing just two extra base hits in 14.1 innings of work and holding opponents to a .211 batting average. In a complete-game win over Boston University, she allowed just one earned run on four hits with three strikeouts. She also held No. 11 Texas A&M to just one run on four hits over 4.0 innings.
Other Hitter of the Week nominees included: CSU Bakersfield's Sydney Raeber hit .500 with two doubles and three RBIs over five games ... Sierra Smith of Grand Canyon hit .500 with four RBIs ... Missouri-Kansas City's Kendra Leach hit .500 and slugged .900 over four games last week ... Rose Saenz of Seattle U hit .538 with a double, one RBI and one stolen base ... Utah Valley's Morgan Smith hit .375 with five stolen bases over four games.
Other Pitcher of the Week nominees included: CSU Bakersfield's Amber Mills went 1-2 with a 3.50 ERA ... Amber Grove of Missouri-Kansas City went 2-1 with a 4.05 ERA and 16 strikeouts over 19.0 innings last week ... NM State's Kayla Green went 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA over 14.0 innings ... Andie Larkins of Seattle U went 2-1 with a 3.50 ERA and 18 strikeouts over 18.0 innings.
CURRENT HITTING STREAKS
Seattle U's Rose Saenz currently has a WAC-leading eight-game hitting streak. CSU Bakersfield's Sydney Raeber is close behind at seven.
NM STATE'S NEW EMPHASIS ON STOLEN BASES
NM State currently leads the WAC with 52 stolen bases, more than twice the number of the second-place team in that category, Utah Valley (25). The Aggies only had 56 stolen bases all of last season.
SEATTLE U'S LARKINS HAS EARNED ALL SEVEN SEATTLE U WINS
Seattle U freshman pitcher Andie Larkins picked up both wins in the circle for the Redhawks last weekend and both were complete game outings (including extra innings vs. Bradley. Larkins has notched all seven wins in the circle for Seattle U thus far this season.
NM STATE RANKS IN TOP 20 NATIONALLY IN SEVERAL OFFENSIVE CATEGORIES
NM State currently ranks eighth nationally in batting average (.373), 12th in both slugging percentage (.581) and on-base percentage (.453), and 15th in stolen bases per game (2.17). The Aggies are also 35th in home runs per game (1.04), 29th in scoring (6.63) and 48th in doubles per game (1.50).
GRAND CANYON'S OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
Through 23 games this season, Grand Canyon is outscoring its opponents 163 to 90. The Lopes' largest margin of victory is 18 runs, with one 10-run victory, one nine-run win and four victories by eight runs. Six of Grand Canyon's 16 victories have been shutouts.
ELEVEN OF NM STATE'S 16 VICTORIES BY RUN RULE
NM State is currently 16-8 on the season, with 11 of its 16 victories coming by run rule. The Aggies have won five games by 10 runs, two games by nine runs and four games by eight runs and have posted four shutouts 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 46-for-52 for her career in stolen bases.