LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Following a near perfect weekend at the plate and a dominant performance in the circle, Idaho State’s Kacie Burnett and UCLA’s Ally Carda were selected the 2015 Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I National Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively for games played over March 2-8.
Burnett (Napa, Calif.) played a key role in ISU’s series win at Nevada. Doing what a leadoff is supposed to do, the sophomore outfielder was 10-for-12 (.833) with seven runs scored and a perfect 7-for-7 swiping bases. She recorded a hit in her final seven at bats, culminating with a 4-for-4 (2 RBI, 3 R) effort in the series finale versus the Wolf Pack. In that contest, Burnett scored three times, stole three bases and knocked in two runs.
“It is a great honor to receive this award and represent ISU’s softball program,” said Burnett. “My main focus for the weekend was to do my job as a lead off hitter and get on base for my teammates. We performed and executed as a team so I’d like to give credit to everyone of them for working so hard.”
Burnett opened the weekend with back-to-back 3-for-4 contests in which she scored twice and swiped two bags in each game, while adding a triple in the opener. In addition, the Big Sky Player of the Week slugged 1.083 and recorded a .833 on base percentage with a double, triple and two RBI.
“I would classify this as a normal weekend for Kacie, commented ISU head coach Julie Wright. “I think she probably got a couple of ground balls through that maybe haven’t gone through on past weeks but she has such an aggressive barrel that corners get a little nervous when that comes at them. Then she can drop a bunt right in front of them. She is really difficult to defend. What Kacie did this past weekend is kind of what Kacie does all the time.”
Carda, a senior from Elk Grove, Calif., went 3-0 and did not allow a run in 17 innings of work, guiding her team to a 5-0 weekend at the Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament. The Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week punctuated her week by tossing her second no-hitter of the season against Illinois on Friday, which was the first of three complete-game shutouts.
“It is an honor to be named National Pitcher of the Week,” Carda said. “Our focus as a team was to be locked on every game and offensively the team did a great job of scoring runs so that on defense, I could just simply pitch.”
For the week, Carda struck out 32, surrendered just four hits and walked six as she held her opponents to a .077 batting average. Following her nine-strikeout (5IP) no-hitter, she tossed consecutive six-inning shutouts against UC Davis and Providence. She struck out a career-high 14 and scattered three hits against the Aggies, and closed out the weekend with a near no-hitter versus the Friars (1H, 9K) in which she twirled 5.2 innings of hitless ball.
“Ally had an outstanding weekend and has been working hard to be at her best when it matters the most,” head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said. “She threw hard and with great command of all of her pitches. We are very proud that she is recognized with this honor.”
Player of the Week
March 10 – Kacie Burnett (Idaho State)
March 3 – A.J. Andrews (LSU)
Feb. 24 – Jenna Lilley (Oregon)
Feb. 17 – Lauren Haeger (Florida)
Feb. 10 – Lindsey Stephens (Texas)
Pitcher of the Week
March 10 – Ally Carda (UCLA)
March 3 – Delanie Gourley (Florida)
Feb. 24 – Cheridan Hawkins (Oregon)
Feb. 17 – Shelby Turnier (UCF)
Feb. 10 – Miranda Kramer (Western Kentucky)
Selected Top Performances
Auburn’s Emily Carosone grabbed SEC Player of the Week honors after batting .526 with three doubles, three home runs, 10 RBI and seven runs at the Judi Garman Classic… Florida State’s Lacey Waldrop was tabbed ACC Pitcher of the Week; She tossed a pair of complete-game shutouts, including a no-hitter against Coastal Carolina, and allowed just two hits and struck out 14 while holding her opponents to a .054 batting average… NEC Pitcher of the Week, Central Connecticut State’s Laura Messena, was 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA, a pair of two-hit shutouts, 22 strikeouts and held opponents to a .119 batting average… Pac 12 Player of the Week, Delaney Spaulding of UCLA, batted .562 with three doubles, three home runs, 10 RBI, eight runs scored and a 1.312 slugging percentage… Michigan’s Sierra Romero batted .692 (9-13), slugged 1.538 (3HR) and recorded a .818 on base percentage (8 walks) on her way to Big 10 Player of the Week honors… SEC Pitcher of the Week, Sydney Littlejohn of Alabama, tossed her second perfect game of the season against Ole Miss… Loyola Marymount’s Alicia Brown earned WCC Player of the Week recognition by hitting .556 (10-18) with three doubles, three home runs, eight RBI, five runs and a 1.222 slugging percentage… Northwestern’s Kristen Wood notched her third career no-hitter with nine strikeouts in her only appearance of the week against Ball State and grabbed Big 10 Pitcher of the Week accolades… Arizona State’s Breanna Macha was selected Pac-12 Freshman of the Week after a 4-1 week with a save at the Judi Garman in which she beat two top-10 opponents and also became the first pitcher to shutout Michigan (2-0 in eight innings) this season… American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week, Karla Claudio of USF, was 2-0 with three saves, a 0.40 ERA, 24 strikeouts and a .119 opponents batting average… Southern Conference Player of the Week, UNCG’s Nicole Thomas, batted .500 (11-22) with four multi-hit games, four doubles, two home runs and 10 RBI… Texas State’s Kendall Wiley batted .833 (5-for-6) and recorded a .900 on base percentage with a double and five RBI to earn Sun Belt Player of the Week honors… Furman’s Lindsey Bert twirled a no-hitter (6K) at Winthrop and finished 3-0 with a 0.33 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 21 innings of work… UTEP’s Ashley Eldridge was selected Conference USA Co-Player of the Week after batting .533 (8-15) with three long balls, 10 RBI and six runs scored… Marshall’s Morgan Zerkle, the other Conference USA Co-Player of the Week, batted .727 (8-11) with a double, triple, home run, five RBI, four runs and a 1.273 slugging percentage… Tennessee’s Meghan Gregg was named SEC Freshman of the Week after batting .688 (11-16) with four home runs and 13 RBI… Oklahoma’s Lauren Chamberlain batted .700 (7-10) and slugged 2.000 with four home runs and 11 RBI… UMKC’s Katie Kelley was named WAC Hitter of the Week, following a weekend in which she hit .500 with two doubles, four home runs and a 16 RBI in five games… NDSU’s Krista Menke tossed her second no-hitter of the season against Purdue (8IP, 12K) and also struck out nine against Northern Iowa to garner Summit League Pitcher of the Week honors… Stanford’s Kayla Bonstrom batted .526 (10-19) with four doubles, two home runs and eight RBI… Oregon’s Cheridan Hawkins was 2-0 with two saves, while allowing just one run on five hits with 26 strikeouts and zero walks at the Judi Garman Classic… Florida’s Aleshia Ocasio picked up wins over No. 3 Michigan and No. 2 Oregon to finish 3-0 with a 0.82 ERA and 18 strikeouts at the Judi Garmin Classic.