Softball Weekly Release #13

May 8, 2006

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Player of the Week

Kaleigh Rafter, Detroit - INF/C
Sophomore * Guelph, Ontario
Rafter hit .467 for the week in helping Detroit to a 4-1 overall and League mark (all on the road), including a pair of wins over then League-leader Cleveland State, in guiding the Titans to their highest league finish since 2002. The 6-1 Canadian sophomore was 7-for-15 with four of her hits going for extra bases while driving in eight runs as well. In the double header sweep of Wright State, Rafter blasted three home runs, breaking her own Detroit single-season record each time.

Pitcher of the Week

Lisa Meissner, UW-Green Bay - RHP
Senior * Two Rivers, Wis.
Meissner appeared in all four of the Phoenix's games last week, posting a 3-0 record while recording the team's first save of the season. In a 5-0 win over Loyola Thursday, she tossed her second one-hitter against the Ramblers. In Sunday's first game of a doubleheader against Butler, Meissner took a shutout into the seventh inning before settling for a 7-1 win and came in relief in the nightcap and got the save. In Monday's finale against the Bulldogs, she earned an eleven-inning victory while striking out 13 in her eighth double-digit strikeout game of the season.

Horizon League News and Notes

Butler Bulldogs
- Sophomore outfielder Jenny Jacobs hit her fifth home run of the season Monday, tying Amy Hyerczyk for the team lead heading into postseason play.

- Exactly half (23 of her team-leading 46) of sophomore first baseman Amy Hyerczyk's hits have been for extra bases (14 doubles, four triples and five home runs).

Cleveland State Vikings
- The Vikings set a school record with 14 league victories. CSU also matched its highest tournament seed ever, earning the No. 2 seed for the fourth time in 12 seasons in the Horizon League.

- CSU also established a school record with 213 runs scored this season. The team's current .291 batting average would also be a record, while the Vikings are four doubles and two home runs shy of setting new marks in both of those categories as well.

Detroit Titans
- The Titans' third-place finish is the highest Detroit has ended the season since 2002. Detroit's 13 League wins represent a new school standard.

- Sophomore infielder/catcher Kaleigh Rafter added to her single-season home run record with three in the twinbill at Wright State, setting the mark at 12 thus far. What makes this stat even more amazing is the fact that Rafter did not have a homer at all last year and hit just three doubles. She has 11 doubles this spring, a mark that puts her sixth all-time for a single season.

UIC Flames
- With a three-game sweep over Wright State and some help from Detroit, UIC captured the 2006 Horizon League regular-season title with a 14-6 record. It was the Flames' third-straight loop crown and ninth in the last 11 seasons.

- Freshman Sarah Clynes has been impressive during her rookie season with the Flames. She tossed the first no-hitter by a UIC pitcher since Alison Aguilar blanked Fordham on March 16, 2002, when she tossed a no-no against Detroit on April 8. Clynes is 13-5 on the campaign with team-best marks in ERA (2.83), strikeouts (116) and complete games (8).

Loyola Ramblers
- Sophomore shortstop Kat Krause walloped her 10th home run of the season, a walk-off grand slam, in a 7-3 victory over Youngstown State on May 6. That blast gave her sole possession of the Loyola single-season record for round-trippers and also moved her into a tie on the school's career homer chart with 14.

- The Ramblers, who already own a single-season mark with 90 stolen bases, enter the Horizon League Championship with 29 home runs. Junior outfielder Tara Miller has equaled Ellen Antonacci's (1997) single-season school mark with 31 stolen bases.

UW-Green Bay Phoenix
- Kate Sullivan's 27 RBI this season are one shy of the school single-season record of 28 set by Amber Techlin in 2002. Of the senior's 27 RBI, 18 have come with two outs. She is batting .600 (21 for 35) when coming to the plate with two outs this season.

- UW-Green Bay enters the Horizon League tournament on a season-best five-game winning streak.

- UW-Green Bay's 11-inning win over Butler Monday was the team's longest game since dropping a 4-2 12-inning decision to Cleveland State April 24, 2004.

Wright State Raiders
- After defeating Youngstown State in the series finale to pick up their first win of the season on April 2, the last six series finales have not been as kind to the Raiders as they have been outscored 41-9 in dropping all six, including a 5-1 setback in the finale with UIC Sunday.

- Freshman catcher Melanie McInally continues her strong hitting of late as after batting just .153 for the season after the first UW-Green Bay game, she has hit .344 since (19 games) with six home runs, 21 RBI and 11 runs scored, with all but one of those home runs, two RBI and two runs scored coming in League play.

Youngstown State Penguins
- Freshman infielder Allyse Ledford hit her first career home run at a very opportune time for Youngstown State. Ledford broke a 2-2 tie in the top of the sixth inning with a two-run homer to lift YSU to a 4-2 victory over Loyola on Sunday. For the week, Ledford batted .333 and scored twice while driving in three runs.

- Youngstown State's 25 home runs in 2006 is the second-highest single-season total in school history. The 2003 squad set the school mark with 33.