Oakland's Hartley and Cleveland State's Knight Tab Weekly Accolades

INDIANAPOLIS –Oakland shortstop Sarah Hartley (Birch Run, Mich.) is the Horizon League softball Player of the Week, while the Cleveland State junior Susan Knight (Milan, Ohio) is the Horizon League softball Pitcher of the Week for the week of Feb. 23-March 2.

Oakland competed this past week in Fort Myers, Fla. before taking part in the USF Under Armour Invitational in Clearwater, Fla. The squad slated seven games over that span and went 4-3. The Golden Grizzlies defeated Ave Maria (4-3, 11-0) twice in addition to Radford (12-3) and Rhode Island (10-0).

Hartley led the Golden Grizzlies’ offense over the seven games, posting a batting average of .462 while going 12-of-26 from the plate. The junior tallied 26 total bases and knocked in seven RBI. Hartley compiled a 1.000 slugging percentage with two doubles, three triples and two home runs for Oakland. Her top performances of the week included a 3-for-4, 2 RBI game against Radford and also went 3-for-4 facing Ave Maria with two runs scored.

Cleveland State competed in the Dolphin Classic this past weekend in Jacksonville, Fla. The Vikings went 2-1 during the three-game tournament over two days of competition. The squad defeated Jacksonville on Friday in a 4-1 victory followed by a 14-11 win on Saturday versus Abilene Christian.

Knight tabbed stellar performances in the circle for Cleveland State and collected two wins on 10.0 innings of work. The junior tabbed a 0.00 earned-run average in the two wins, including one start against Jacksonville. Facing Jacksonville, Knight pitched six innings, allowed no runs, and fanned two batters. Versus Abilene Christian, she came in for relief to strike out 10 batters while allowing just three hits and no runs. Over the 10.0 innings she held batters to a .212 batting-against average and did not allow an extra-base hit.

Oakland continues play on Friday, March 6 against Central Connecticut and Hampton in Hampton, Va. The Vikings hit the diamond next on Friday, March 7 to face SE Missouri State and Northern Kentucky in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Top Players of the Week:
Erica McNew, Cleveland State (Jr.): Hit .556 with five runs and six RBI in three games at the Dolphin Classic. The junior knocked two over the fence while collecting two hits in two of the contests and also went 2-for-3 with three runs and three RBI facing Abilene Christian.
Libby Pfeffer, Wright State (So.): Went 1-for-1 against Murray State, hit a solo home run against Eastern Kentucky and posted a 2-for-3 performance with a home run, four RBI and two runs scored versus Belmont.
Savannah Soppet, UIC (So.): Tabbed two hits against Rhode Island and Scared Heart, continuing her six-game hitting streak. The sophomore also registered the game-winning RBI against Sacred Heart.

Top Pitchers of the Week:
Bridget Boyle, UIC (Jr.): Pitched her first complete game of the season and her second win against Sacred Heart where she held the Pioneers to two hits, one run and fanned three batters. Came in for relied in the third inning against Villanova where she gave up three hits, no runs and struck out three batters.

Players of the Week
Feb. 2: Nena Doran, Cleveland State
Feb. 9: Nena Doran, Cleveland State
Feb. 16: Jorgi Calombaris, Valparaiso
Feb. 23: Sarah Hartley, Oakland

Pitchers of the Week
Feb. 2: Karissa Frazier, UIC
Feb. 9: Alex Radjen, Cleveland State
Feb. 16: Karissa Frazier, UIC
Feb. 23: Susan Knight, Cleveland State