Softball Player of the Week
MICHELLE KAMINKSI
UW-Green Bay, Senior, 2B, Merrill, Wis.
UW-Green Bay senior Michelle Kaminski is the Horizon League Softball Player of the Week for the period ending April 24.
Kaminski had a stellar week both at the plate and on the field for the Phoenix in its three-game sweep of Butler April 23-24 that lifted UW-Green Bay into sole possession of second place. The senior infielder lifted the Phoenix in its 10-4 game one win April 23 with a 2-4 day with a three-run home run, a double and two runs scored. For the week, Kaminski was 6-11 (.545) with a home run, four doubles, four runs and a blistering 1.182 slugging percentage. Kaminski was also perfect in the field on 15 chances.
Softball Pitcher of the Week
GRACE LUGINBUHL
Cleveland State, Junior, RHP, Lima, Ohio
Cleveland State junior Grace Luginbuhl is the Horizon League Softball Pitcher of the Week for the period ending April 24.
Luginbuhl was spectacular in the circle last week, picking up all four of the Vikings' wins. She allowed just one earned run in 25.1 innings (0.28 ERA), walked four and struck out 19. She started off by going the distance in a 13 inning victory over Youngstown State, allowing just one earned run and no walks while fanning 10. In the opener two days later against St. Francis, she tossed CSU's first shutout of the season, blanking the Red Flash on five hits and six strikeouts. She enters play this week having not allowed an earned run in 17.0 innings.
Other Top Player Performances - April 25
JoAnna Gonzalez, Butler, Sophomore, 2B (Spokane, Wash.)
Gonzalez continued her hot hitting with a .421 mark in the team's six contests last week. Her eight hits included two doubles over the weekend against Horizon League opponent UW-Green Bay. She added two runs and knocked in two. On the season, Gonzalez is hitting a team-best .331.
Michele Penney, Cleveland State, Sophomore, OF (Ravenna, Ohio)
Penny batted .382 last week (13-for-34), collecting nine RBI and four extra base hits while scoring nine runs. In the doubleheader sweep of Youngstown State, she collected two hits and scored three runs, including the tying run in the bottom of the seventh in game two. Two days later, she either drove in or scored five of CSU's seven runs against St. Francis, collecting four hits in the process. In the second game, she scored the tying run in the top of the seventh and then drove in the game-winner in the eighth.
Lindsay Roy, Detroit, Junior, DP (Brampton, Ont.)
Roy went a combined 5-for-7 with two RBI and two runs scored versus Wright State in the Titans only action of the week.
Cameron Astiazaran, UIC, Senior, OF/DP (Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.)
Astiazaran led UIC to a perfect 2-0 record last week, batting .571 with four singles and two RBI. Astiazaran went 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of RBI in the Flames' 12-0 triumph over Butler on April 19th and then helped UIC down #15 Northwestern going 2-for-4 with a run scored. Astiazaran has now reached base safely in 34 straight games dating back to March 10th. For the season, Astiazaran is batting .480 while her average jumps to .500 in Horizon League games.
Raven Gengler, Loyola, Sophomore, C (Oak Park, Ill.)
Gengler hit safely in all four games last week for Loyola, running her hitting streak to six contests. The slugging catcher recorded four multi-hit efforts, including her third three-hit performance of the season. In a doubleheader at Wisconsin, Gengler went 4-for-6 with a double, home run and two RBI. The roundtripper was her fourth of the season. In a sweep of Valparaiso on April 20, she went 5-for-6 with a pair of doubles, two runs and a RBI. She went 3-for-3 with two doubles and a RBI in an 8-2 victory in game one against the Crusaders. Gengler has raised her batting average by 81 points, to a team-best .370, during her six-game hitting streak.
Mary Jane D'Arcy, Wright State, Sophomore, OF (Sacramento, Calif.)
D'Arcy tallied a hit in each game of Ohio State doubleheader, driving in two in the second game. She went 3-for-3 with a RBI and a run scored in opener at Detroit before she went 4-for-5 with her first collegiate home run, two doubles, three runs scored and three RBI in second game with the Titans April 21.
Other Top Pitching Performances - April 25
Mercedes Lovato, UIC, Freshman, P (Simi Valley, Calif.)
Lovato notched her first career victory over a nationally-ranked opponent on April 20, in a complete-game effort versus #15 Northwestern. Lovato allowed just two earned runs and scattered nine hits while fanning three. She is now 15-9 on the year with a 3.85 ERA.
Katie Schupbach, Loyola, Freshman, LHP (Rockford, Ill.)
Schupbach threw a complete game, scattering nine hits and allowing two earned runs while striking out three in a 5-3 victory at Valparaiso on April 20. The southpaw suffered the loss in a 4-1 decision at Wisconsin on April 19.
Lisa Meissner, UW-Green Bay, Junior, RHP (Two Rivers, Wis.)
Meissner posted her fifth win of the year with her nine-inning effort against Butler April 24. Meissner struck out nine while scattering six hits in UW-Green Bay's 3-2 victory. In the seventh inning of a 2-2 contest, Meissner got out of a jam with runners on second and third with one out with back-to-back strikeouts to retire the side, the first two of eight consecutive batters retired during the end of regulation and two extra innings.
Jessica Lander, Wright State, Freshman, P (Lebanon, Ohio)
Lander recorded a six-inning complete-game win over Detroit, allowing just one earned run, while giving up four hits and a walk while striking out three. She earned the second-game win over the Titans with 4.1 innings of one-run, five-hit relief with five strikeouts on April 21.
Horizon League News & Notes
Butler Bulldogs (18-27, 6-8 HL)
Saturday was Senior Day at Butler Field with the team's five seniors being recognized prior to the first pitch...freshman Jenny Jacobs hit her eighth home run of the season in Saturday's second game...Butler squandered leads in all three games of the weekend series against UW-Green Bay...Sunday's game took 2 hours and 26 minutes...The weekend series between the two teams was the only weekend Horizon League action, as the other three series were cancelled due to bad weather...Butler again played without third baseman Melissa Lemrick Sunday. Senior Andrea Walker handed off catching responsibilities to freshman Ashley Barry and played third...the team's current six-game losing streak is the longest of the season.
Cleveland State (14-21, 4-4 HL)
Cleveland State continues on its two-week, nine-game road trip with a doubleheader at Toledo on Wednesday followed by a three-game set at UIC over the weekend...The Vikings have stepped up their play of late, winning eight of their last 10 contests, including all four games last week...Senior catcher Jackie Cornelius has been a big reason for CSU's resurgence as of late, going 12-for-29 at the plate (.414) with five RBI and seven runs scored. She also stole five bases while throwing out five runners on the basepaths.
Detroit Titans (14-17, 5-5 HL)
Senior P/OF Anna Ollgaard was a finalist for the President's Award, the highest honor a UDM Student Athlete can win. The award was presented last week at the annual President's Academic Awards Luncheon...All 14 of the 14 eligible players (non freshmen) for either the Athletic Director's Honor Roll, the Horizon League Honor Roll or both earned the distinction and were presented with their awards at the luncheon as well...With Mother Nature playing a cruel joke on most of the Midwest this weekend with late April snow, the Titans lost three more games to the weather. That brings the total this year to nine games that could not be played. It was also the second League series to be changed due to weather with the Titans and Loyola only being able to play two of their scheduled three games on April 2-3.
UIC Flames (32-21, 8-2 HL)
UIC toppled Big Ten leader #15 Northwestern on Wednesday, April 20, snapping the Wildcats' 14-game winning streak with a 4-3 victory at Flames Field...the win over a nationally-ranked opponent was the Flames first since downing then-#10 Tennessee, 6-5, back on May 22, 2004 at the NCAA Regional Championships...Senior Cameron Astiazaran continues to close in on the NCAA single-season doubles record of 29 set by Fresno State's Nina Lindenberg back in 1996...Astiazaran currently has 23 doubles this season with two weeks remaining in the regular-season.
Loyola Ramblers (14-25, 5-5 HL)
First baseman Allison Scanlin needs only three RBI to equal the Loyola career record of 85 RBI...sophomore catcher Raven Gengler has raised her batting average by 81 points, to a team-best .370, during her current six-game hitting streak...Gengler has five multi-hit efforts during that streak...Loyola's three-game series at Youngstown State last weekend was cancelled due to inclement weather...freshman Kat Krause batted .385 (5 for 13) with seven RBI in four games for Loyola last week...the Ramblers' bats have come to life recently as the team has hit .308 (33 for 107) over the last four games...Loyola is 11-1 this season when scoring four or more runs...Loyola plays six of its next eight contests at home.
UW-Green Bay Phoenix (15-13, 8-3 HL)
For the first time since joining the Horizon League in 1995, the Phoenix has posted eight victories against league foes. The most prior to this season was seven wins in 2003...UW-Green Bay has its final road league game this week with a singlet at Loyola Thursday, April 28 before hosting Detroit April 30-May 1...The Phoenix just missed etching their team's collective name in the NCAA record books with a team-record five home runs in its 10-4 win over Butler April 23. UW-Green Bay had back-to-back home runs by Kate Sullivan and Jenny Rehfeldt in the third inning while teammates Stephanie Hansen, Cori Thiermann and Michelle Kaminski tallied round-trippers in the later innings. While 10 home runs in a game is the NCAA record, 11 teams are tied for seventh with six home runs.
Wright State Raiders (13-15, 5-5 HL)
Wright State split four games last week before the UIC series was cancelled due to poor weather...The Raiders entered the Detroit doubleheader with five home runs as a team through 26 games, but matched that total in one afternoon, including three in the opening game. Stephanie Salas hit two in the opener while Amanda Cody, Kristen Farley and Mary Jane D'Arcy each had one. It was the first collegiate homer for D'Arcy, who went seven for eight altogether in the two games with four runs scored, four RBI and two doubles. All five of the games this week will be at home as the Raiders hosts IUPUI on Tuesday and Youngstown State over the weekend. On Saturday, WSU will induct three new members into its Walk of Fame in Vicky Mercer, Deborah Loewer and Chris Snyder and on Sunday, Salas, the lone senior on the team, will be honored.
Youngstown State (16-29, 2-11 HL)
Junior Tiffany Patteson set the YSU career triples record at 14 after belting her third triple of the season against UW-Green Bay on Sunday, April 17...Patteson now holds the YSU all-time triples mark and ranks third all-time with 41 career doubles...With five home runs this season, freshman McKenzie Bedra is now tied for fifth on the YSU single-season home run chart.
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