April 04, 2019 / By mobanmarket
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Ohio State’s Cammi Prantl and Baylor’s Heather Stearns were selected the Louisville/Slugger NFCA Division I National Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for games play Feb. 22-28, announced the Association on Tuesday afternoon.
Swinging a red-hot bat, Prantl hit .786 and was retired just three times as she helped the Buckeyes (9-4) to a 4-1 showing USC Upstate’s Spartan Classic. She went 11-for-14 with three doubles, two home runs, nine RBI and eight runs. The senior from Ashville, Ohio slugged 1.429 and reached base at a .824 clip.
“I am extremely honored and humbled to be receiving this national award,” Prantl said. “This would not be possible without the support of my teammates and the coaching staff. Driving in runs is impossible without my teammates being on base. I want to especially thank coach [Jenna] Hall for the hundreds of hours we have spent together working on my swing and her unwavering support. Go Bucks!”
In a 15-3 victory over Furman, Prantl was 4-for-4 with a long ball, two doubles and three RBI. She followed up the next day by knocking in three and recording two more hits. In the nightcap, she homered, doubled and after being intentionally walked, scored what proved to be the game-winning run against Virginia Tech. Prantl added a 3-for-3 effort against the host Spartans and registered a pair of RBI in their first contest against the Hokies.
“Cammi has not only had a fantastic weekend but an entire career for the Buckeyes,” said head coach Kelly Kovach Schoenly. “She was determined to help our team be more clutch and she set that tone early and continued through the entire weekend. Cammi ignited our offense and it was contagious. We are thrilled for her to achieve this honor and appreciate that she was noticed for her accomplishments.”
Powered by a no-hitter, Stearns, a native of Plano Texas, was nearly untouchable and did not allow a run in her three appearances at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Classic last weekend. She got off to a tremendous start by no-hitting Southern Mississippi in the tournament opener. The senior righty struck out 11 and walked two in five innings. Sterns continued her dominance against Mississippi State, who is currently receiving votes in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll. Her one-hit, nine-strikeout performance lifted the 24th-ranked Bears to a 4-0 triumph.
“This weekend was a great team effort and a big turnaround for us,” said Stearns. “Every aspect of our game was outstanding, from pitching to hitting to defense. It is extremely exciting to gain national attention for the Baylor softball program.”
She closed out the tournament striking out the final two batters to preserve a 1-0 win over Nicholls State and earn the save. For the week, she went 2-0, struck out 22, allowed just one hit and held her opposition to a .027 batting average.
“Heather is a tremendous competitor and a great leader,” head coach Glenn Moore said. “I’m very proud to see her hard work get recognized on a national level.”
Player of the Week
March 1 – Cammi Prantl (Ohio State)
Feb. 23 – Ali Aguilar (Washington)
Feb. 16 – Lexie Elkins (Louisiana-Lafayette)
Pitcher of the Week
March 1 – Heather Stearns (Baylor)
Feb. 23 – Jailyn Ford (James Madison)
Feb. 16 – Jill Compton (Fresno State)
Selected Top Performances
Florida State’s Alex Powers was named ACC Player of the Week after hitting .647 (11-17) with three doubles, three home runs, 11 RBI, seven runs scored, a 1.353 slugging percentage and .700 OBP… Sierra Hyland of Cal Poly finished 3-0 with a save, 0.60 ERA, 37 strikeouts and a .157 opponent’s batting average in 23.1 innings of work to earn Big West Pitcher of the Week honors… Pac 12 Player of the Week, Nikki Girard of Arizona State hit .833 (10-12) with four doubles, nine RBI and 1.000 fielding percentage (18-18) at second base… Florida State’s Jessica Burroughs tossed a no-hitter versus Bradley, recorded 16 shutout innings and allowed just three hits with 23 strikeouts and a .059 opponent’s batting average to pick up ACC Co-Pitcher of the Week accolades… Sarah Dawson of Pittsburgh tossed the program’s first perfect game against Providence and in turn was selected ACC Co-Pitcher of the Week… Kennesaw State’s Logan Viers twirled a perfect game against Alabama A&M and finished 2-0 with a 1.98 ERA, 23 strikeouts in 17.2 innings to garner Atlantic Sun Co-Pitcher of the Week… Tulsa’s Caitlin Sill earned AAC Pitcher of the Week honors after she went 2-0 with a 0.93 ERA and shutout against Texas… Kasey Cooper of Auburn hit .438 with 11 hits, two doubles, three home runs, 11 RBI, seven runs scored and a perfect fielding percentage at the hot corner… Minnesota’s Sara Groenewegan was named Big Ten Player of the Week after going 3-0 with a 1.98 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 23 innings of work… AAC Player of the Week, USF’s Lauren Evans hit .500 with two doubles, two triples, a home run, nine RBI and seven runs scored… MVC Player of the Week Erica Nagel of Loyola hit .800 (12-15) with two triples and nine runs scored… Southern Illinois’ Brianna Jones was selected MVC Pitcher and Newcomer of the Week following a pair of complete-game shutouts- she struck out 16 and posted a 0.47 ERA in three appearances… Kaitlin Fifield of UTEP was selected Conference USA Co-Pitcher of the Week tossing a no-hitter with nine strikeouts against Texas A&M-Corpus-Christi… FIU’s Megan Kugelmann twirled her first collegiate no-hitter against Central Connecticut and finished the week with eight scoreless innings to share Conference USA Pitcher of the Week recognition… UMKC’s Katie Kelley was named WAC Player of the Week, hitting .538 with two doubles and nine RBI in four games… St. John’s Krystal Puga hit .500 with 10 hits, two home runs and 10 RBI to earn BIG EAST Player of the Week recognition… Dayton’s Gabrielle Snyder allowed just one earned run and picked up two wins in 18.2 inning of work to garner the A-10 Pitcher of the Week plaudit… Co-Conference USA Player of the Week Stephanie Texeira of FIU belted three home runs and knocked in 12… San Diego State’s Jenavee Peres was named Mountain West Player of the Week after hitting .571 with three home runs, a triple, eight RBI and nine runs scored… McKenna Isenberg of Nevada went 2-0 with a 0.93 ERA and 19 strikeouts to garner Mountain West Pitcher of the Week recognition… Pac 12 Pitcher of the Week, Meehra Nelson of Oregon State picked up a win over No. 12 Oklahoma and finished 2-1 with a save and 25 strikeouts at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic.
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