South Dakota’s Minogue; Oklahoma’s Parker Named Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I National Player and Pitcher of the Week

South Dakota junior Yvon Minogue and Oklahoma freshman Paige Parker were selected 2015 Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I National Pitcher and Player of the Week respectively, for games played over April 6-12.

Yvon Minogue

Minogue hit an eye-popping .824 (14-for-17) from the leadoff spot with three home runs, three doubles and a triple, while driving in eight runs and scoring 14 times. Her three doubles broke USD’s 22-year old record in a season (21) and put her on top of Division I in that category. She slugged a whopping 1.647 and posted a .857 on base percentage by reaching base safely in 18 of 21 plate appearances (four walks). The Corona Calif. native recorded at least two hits in all five games, scored three runs in four of the five contests and did not strike out all week.

“I feel blessed to get this award,” Minogue said. “I was happy with just getting Summit Player of the Week, but to get this award is unbelievable. I went up to bat confident and knowing I needed to do whatever I could to help the team.”

Selected Summit League Player of the Week, Minogue led a Coyote offensive explosion that included a pair of 20-run showings at Creighton and versus IPFW. The junior first baseman posted a week-best 4-for-4 performance in game two against the Blue Jays, which was precluded by a 3-for-5 showing with a home run, four RBI and three runs scored in the opener. She capped off her week by going 3-for-3 with a double, home run, three RBI and three runs scored to complete the Summit League home series sweep of the Mastodons in Vermillion, S.D.

“What an extraordinary and much deserved honor for Yvon,” said South Dakota head coach Amy Klyse. “She is seeing the ball really well and had a great week at the plate. We are so proud of the work she’s put in for herself and her team. She got a chance to shine this week and to get national recognition from the NFCA for it is really amazing.”

Paige Parker

Parker put forth a masterful weekend performance, holding the Texas Longhorns’ offense scoreless and helping No. 5 Oklahoma sweep a Big 12 road series in Austin. Posting a 2-0 record with a save, the rookie hurler did not allow a run, surrendered just six hits, struck out 21 batters in 16.1 inning of work and held Longhorn batters to a .113 average.

“It’s truly an honor to receive this award,” Parker said. “I couldn’t do it without my teammates. They are always backing me up.”

“I executed the game plan coach Lombardi and I had talked about,” Parker commenting on her weekend’s success. “I was able to hit my spots and our defense was stellar behind me.”

A native of Independence, Mo., Parker twirled a pair of complete game shutouts in games one (3H, 9K, 2 BB) and three (2H, 7K, 2BB) against RV Texas. Sandwiched in between her two victories was a 2.1-inning save in which she struck out five batters, gave up one hit and did not allow a free pass. Parker entered with the tying run on third and two outs in the fifth and proceeded to fan her first batter. She would strike out two Longhorns each in the final two innings.

“Paige got thrown into the fire early in the season as a freshman, and to see her growth throughout these last couple of months has been tremendous,” OU head coach Patty Gasso said. “Her passion for learning and becoming great has been infectious and a joy to watch. For her to have the kind of success she did this weekend against a strong, tough-hitting team like Texas is just a tribute to her hard work and her commitment to helping this team find ways to win. I’m very proud of her, especially as being a freshman, to receive such a prestigious award.”

Player of the Week
April 14 – Yvon Minogue (South Dakota)
April 7 – Sabrina Gamboa (Western Michigan)
March 31 – Mallory Foster (UT Arlington)
March 24 – Sara Hingsberger (Weber State)
March 17 – Bianka Bell (LSU)
– Shelby Pendley (Oklahoma)
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
April 14 – Paige Parker (Oklahoma)
April 7 – Shelby Turnier (UCF)
March 31 – Shelby Turnier (UCF)
March 24 – Haley Chambers (SIU Edwardsville)
March 17 – Ally Carda (UCLA)
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

• Pittsburgh’s McKayla Taylor garnered ACC Player of the Week honors after a monstrous week at the plate; She batted .615 (8-for-13) with four home runs, 17 RBI, including all eight in an 8-7 win over Syracuse and 22 total bases…
• Georgia’s Chelsea Wilkinson was selected SEC Co-Pitcher of the Week after tossing 23.2 innings of scoreless ball with 28 strikeouts and two complete-game shutouts…
• Cal State Northridge’s Katie Hooper hit .700 (7-for-10) with two doubles, a triple, two long balls, five RBI, four runs scored a .750 OBP and a 1.700 slugging percentage to grab Conference Player of the Week honors…
• Shelby Turnier of UCF went 3-0, did not allow a run and tallied 18 strikeouts in 15 innings of action to earn American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week…
• St. Johns’ Erin Burner batted .700 (7-for-10) with three doubles, three home runs, 12 RBI, a .769 OBP and a 1.900 slugging percentage to take home BIG EAST Player of the Week accolades…
• SEC Co-Pitcher of the Week, Florida’s Lauren Haeger, was 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA, a shutout, two complete games and 11 strikeouts in wins over Florida State and Kentucky…
• Pac-12 Player of the Week, Janelle Lindvall of Oregon, was 5-for-8 (.625) with a home run, six RBI and three runs scored in leading the Ducks to their first series sweep of ASU since 1989…
• Louisville’s Maryssa Becker was selected ACC Pitcher of the Week after tossing two complete-game shutouts with 12 strikeouts against DePaul and Florida State…
• Delaware State’s Jordan Stamps slugged a monstrous 2.714 and registered an .857 batting average (6-for-7) with a double, four home runs, seven RBI and six runs scored to garner MEAC Player of the Week recognition…
• Big East Pitcher of the Week, Villanova’s Brette Lawrence, was 3-0 with a 0.28 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 24.2 inning of work…
• USC Upstate’s Kendall Settlemyre blasted six home runs, collected four multi-hit games and slugged 1.474 on her way to Atlantic-Sun Player of the Week recognition…
• Central Connecticut’s Laura Messina was 4-0 with three shutouts, a 0.52 ERA, 33 strikeouts to just two walks in 27 innings to garner a NEC Pitcher of the Week selection..
• SEC Player of the Week, Sahvannah Jaquish of LSU, hit .583 with seven hits, seven RBI, a 1.167 slugging percentage and .688 OBP…
• San Diego State’s Kayla Jordan hit .524 (11-for-21) with four doubles, a home run, six RBI, 11 runs, four stolen bases on her way to Mountain West Player of the Week honors…
• Western Kentucky’s Miranda Kramer struck out 36 as she went 3-0 with 0.37 ERA and held opponents to a .138 batting average to take home Conference USA Co-Pitcher of the Week honors…
• Kristen Turner of Iona connected on six home runs, batted .600 (12-for-20) with 11 RBI, seven runs scored, a 1.600 slugging percentage and .667 OBP to take home the MAAC Player of the Week plaudit…
• Georgia State’s Megan Litumbe collected Sun Belt Player of the Week recognition after batting .571 (8-for-14) with five home runs, nine RBI, seven runs, a 1.643 slugging percentage and .667 OBP…
• BYU’s Ashley Thompson hit .615, slugged 1.231, knocked in 10 runs and stole two bases on her way to WCC Player of the Week honors…
• Big Ten Pitcher of the Week, Michigan’s Megan Betsa, tossed a pair of complete game shutouts, scattered five hits, held opponents to a .119 batting average and struck out 23 batter…
• Towson’s Holiday Cahill collected CAA Player of the Week honors after batting .650 (12-for-20) with three doubles, a triple, three home runs, 16 RBI, eight runs scored and a 1.350 slugging percentage…
• McKenna Bull of BYU was named WCC Pitcher of the Week by going 3-0 with a 0.91 ERA, while holding her opponents to a .083 batting average in 15.1 innings…
• CAA Co-Pitcher of the Week, Towson’s Missy McCormick, was 3-0 with three complete-game shutouts, did not allow a run, surrendered just four hits and did not walk a batter in 17 innings…
• Hofstra’s Brook Miko was selected CAA Co-Pitcher of the Week after going 3-0 with a 0.30 ERA, two saves and a 20 strikeouts in 23.1 innings of work…
• La Salle’s Christina Bascara hit .714 (5-for-7) with two home runs, nine RBI, a .800 OBP and 1.714 slugging percentage to earn Atlantic-10 Player of the Week accolades…
• Conference USA Co-Pitcher of the Week, Kylee Hanson of Florida Atlantic, tossed an 18-strikeout no-hitter against Charlotte and did not allow a run in 10 inning of work, including three scoreless frames against Kentucky.

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OUs Paige Parker earns POW honors

In one of college softball’s biggest rivalry’s, Oklahoma’s Paige Parker (Independence, Mo.) shined in her first Red River Rivalry, helping lead the Sooners to a Big 12 series sweep over the Texas Longhorns.

For her efforts, the freshman pitcher earned her first USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year honors the Amateur Softball Association Announced today.

Dominating from the circle, Parker went 2-0 with a save to help the Sooners improve their record to 36-5 and remain perfect at 9-0 in conference play.

In the series opener, Parker shined in the circle in her first Red River Rivalry matchup, striking out nine batters and allowing just three hits while en route to her seventh shutout of the season. Parker retired eight straight batters from the first to third innings, and during the game only one batter reached second base. She struck out a batter in six of the seven innings, including two in the first, fourth and fifth frames.

In game two of Friday’s doubleheader, Parker came on in relief to get her third save of the year. With the Sooners ahead 2-1 in the fifth, Texas got the tying run to third but Parker got a strikeout to keep the lead intact. In total, she struck out five batters while giving up just one hit through two and one-third innings of work.

In the series finale, Parker was yet again lights out from the circle, going the full seven innings to help the Sooners to a series sweep.  Throughout the frame, Parker struck out seven batters while allowing just two walks and two hits as OU recorded its 15th shutout of the year.  Parker also performed at the plate for the Sooners during last week’s play, compiling a .250 (3-for-12) batting average with one RBI and one run scored.

“Paige got thrown into the fire early in the season as a freshman, and to see her growth throughout these last couple of months has been tremendous,” said Oklahoma Head Coach Patty Gasso.

“Her passion for learning and becoming great has been infectious and a joy to watch. For her to have the kind of success she did this weekend against a strong, tough-hitting team like Texas is just a tribute to her hard work and her commitment to helping this team find ways to win. I’m very proud of her, especially being a freshman, to receive such a prestigious award.”

On the week, Parker gave up just four walks and six hits in 16.1 innings of work while striking out 21 batters to improve her season record to 18-3.  This is the first USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Week honors for Parker and the first for an Oklahoma athlete since Week 13 of the 2014 season when Kelsey Stevens earned the honors.

The Sooners now sets their sights on another important Big 12 matchup as they face No. 14 Baylor at home.

2015 USA Softball National Collegiate Players of the Week
Week 1 (Feb. 5-8): Taylor Schoblocher – North Texas – Junior – Utility – Forney, Texas
Week 2 (Feb. 9-15): Lauren Haeger – Florida – Senior – Pitcher/1B – Peoria, Ariz.
Week 3 (Feb. 16-22): Jenna Lilley – Oregon – Freshman – Infield – North Canton, Ohio
Week 4 (Feb. 23 – March 1): Sierra Lawrence – Michigan – Junior – Outfield – Snellville, Ga.
Week 5 (March 2-8): Emily Carosone – Auburn – Junior – Outfield – Orlando, Fla.
Week 6 (March 9-15): Bianka Bell – LSU – Junior – Infield – Tampa, Fla.
Week 7 (March 16-22): Megan Good – James Madison – Freshman – Pitcher/Infielder – Mount Sidney, Va.
Week 8 (March 23-29): Geri Ann Glasco – Oregon – Junior – DP/Pitcher – Watkinsville, Ga.
Week 9 (March 30 – April 5): Shelby Turnier – UCF – Junior – Pitcher – Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Week 10 (April 6-12): Paige Parker – OU – Freshman – Pitcher – Independence, Mo.