A pair of sophomores excelled at the plate and in the circle to take home Big West softball weekly honors.
Extra Base Hit Binge Nets Hooper Honor
Power hitting propelled CSUN sophomore Katie Hooper (Sun Valley, Calif./Burbank HS) to Big West Softball Field Player of the Week accolades as she spearheaded the offensive effort in a series sweep of UC Santa Barbara.
The catcher hit a robust .700 (7-for-10) for the series, tallying two doubles, a triple and two home runs among her seven hits. She scored four runs and drove in five more, accounting for almost half of the 20 runs CSUN posted over the weekend.
Hooper’s power display increased her Big West Conference leading total to 25 extra-base hits, including a conference-best 14 home runs on the year. She posted multiple hits in all three games to boost her season batting average to .390, which ranks her No. 5 in the Big West.
In the series opener, Hooper belted a pair of home runs to finish 3-for-4 with three runs scored and three RBI as the Matadors won 9-4. It was Hooper’s second multi-homer game this year. She went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI in a 4-0 game two victory. In the finale, she posted another 2-for-3 effort, adding a triple, run scored and an RBI for the afternoon.
Hooper posted an impressive 1.700 slugging percentage for the series.
Others nominated: Stephanie Heyward (Cal Poly); Missy Taukeiaho (Cal State Fullerton); Darian Tautalafua (Long Beach State); Karina Romero (UC Riverside); Leisha Li’ili’i (Hawai‘i)
Clermont Ties Long Beach State Strikeouts Record
Long Beach State sophomore Christina Clermont (Carlsbad, Calif./Syracuse) tied a school record for strikeouts in earning the Big West Softball Pitcher of the Week honor.
Clermont fanned 15 Hawai‘i hitters in Saturday’s 8-5 victory to give the 49ers the two-to-one series advantage. The 15 strikeouts equalled the program record for a seven-inning game. She also did not walk a batter.
The right-hander also picked up LBSU’s other win in the series, tossing another complete game in Friday’s 4-2 triumph. She scattered just three hits, walked three and struck out nine.
For the week, Clermont went 2-0 with a 3.50 ERA, striking out 24 batters in 14.0 innings of work. Clermont ranks third in the Big West with 147 strikeouts and fifth with a 2.38 ERA.
Others nominated: Sierra Hyland (Cal Poly); Christina Washington (Cal State Fullerton); Brianna Elder (CSUN); Chelsea Ponce (UC Riverside); Brittany Hitchcock (Hawai‘i)