Photo Courtesy of Wisconsin Athletics
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Senior infielder Michelle Mueller of Wisconsin has been tabbed as the Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I National Player of the Week for games played over April 7-13.
Mueller put together quite the week as the Badgers went a perfect 5-0, batting .600 (9-for-15) with five runs scored, two doubles, four HR’s and a staggering 18 RBIs against North Dakota and Illinois. The La Crosse, Wis., native was a combined 3-for-5 with nine RBIs in the two-game sweep of UND, including 2-for-2 with a grand slam and seven RBIs during a 17-1 (5 inn.) rout in the nightcap. After going 1-for-4 with a double during the opener of an April 11th doubleheader against the Illini, Mueller recorded arguably the finest single-game performance by any UW player in history, registering a perfect 4-for-4 effort with three consecutive HR’s and a school-record eight RBIs as UW prevailed 10-3. During Sunday’s series finale she was 1-for-2, knocked in a run and scored the winning tally to help secure a 3-2 triumph. For the season Mueller is batting .385 overall with nine doubles and team-highs in both HR’s (eight) and RBIs (41).
“I’m so honored to be named Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Player of the Week,” Mueller said. “It’s something that would not have been possible if it weren’t for my teammates. Their ability to get on base and to create chaos offensively gives me an opportunity to be successful. Without them I wouldn’t be getting this award. I’m so thankful to be surrounded by great teammates and a fantastic coaching staff.”
“We couldn’t be more proud of Michelle,” Wisconsin head coach Yvette Healy said. “To see the player she has grown into in the four years she has been here, especially as a local Wisconsin kid who has been committed to working hard and improving her game, it is a huge honor for her and her family. It’s also a huge honor for not only our softball program, but the university as well.”
Mueller and Wisconsin return to action by hosting a mid-week doubleheader against Green Bay (April 16) before hitting the road in league play to visit Penn State for a three-game series over April 18-19.
Selected Top Performances
Radford’s Jessie Hutchins earned Big South Player of the Week honors after batting .556 (10-for-18) with nine runs scored, five HR’s, including two grand slams, and 17 RBIs, while also having a stretch of reaching base in 10 straight plate appearances…Tennessee’s Madison Shipman batted .500 (6-for-12) with seven tallies, five HR’s and eight RBIs over games against Tennessee Tech and No. 21 Texas A&M on the way to earning SEC Player of the Week accolades…BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week Kirsten Verdun of DePaul earned all five of the Blue Demons’ wins last week, posting a 0.86 ERA and 27 strikeouts over 24.1 innings…Missouri’s Mackenzie Sykes batted .533 (8-for-18) with a pair of HR’s during the Tigers’ sweeps of Western Illinois and nationally-ranked Auburn, even registering a six RBI day on April 12 versus AU…Stony Brook’s Allison Cukrov, the America East Co-Pitcher of the Week, was 4-0 with a 0.81 ERA, four complete games, two shutouts and 29 strikeouts over 26 innings…Washington’s Kaitlin Inglesby earned Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week after posting a 2-0 mark with a pair of complete game efforts at league foe Stanford…ACC Player of the Week Sydney O’Hara of Syracuse batted .500 (9-for-18) with six runs, three doubles, a HR and seven RBIs while also going 2-0 from the circle with a save and 15 strikeouts…Villanova’s Kate Poppe fired a no-hitter and went 3-0 with a 0.34 ERA and 29 K’s over 20.2 innings in reaping a BIG EAST Honor Roll selection…UMass’ Bridget Lemire hit at a .583 clip (7-for-12) with four HR’s and 10 RBIs to receive Atlantic-10 Co-Player of the Week…Buffalo’s Sammi Gallardo blasted six HR’s while batting .421 overall and slugging at a 1.421 clip, including two multi-HR games…Ball State’s Jennifer Gilbert was 8-for-14 (.571) with three doubles, four HR’s and five RBIs against a combo of Purdue, Northern Illinois and Western Michigan…Indiana State’s Morgan Allee, the MVC Player of the Week, batted .500 (8-for-16) with four extra-base hits and eight RBIs…Virginia Tech’s Maggie Tyler was a perfect 3-0 with a 0.74 ERA, two shutouts and 22 strikeouts for the Hokies to earn ACC Pitcher of the Week honors…Oklahoma’s Kelsey Stevens was 3-1 with a 1.67 ERA while picking up a pair of victories over nationally-ranked Baylor…Georgia State’s Taylor Anderson hit .533 (8-for-15) with nine runs scored, five walks and four HR’s against Georgia Tech, Georgia Southern and Texas State…Texas’ Taylor Thom hit .571 with seven tallies, two HR’s, including a grand slam, and eight RBIs in a series against Iowa State…Penn’s Leah Allen batted .636 in a series against Cornell with a 1.727 slugging percentage and, in one of the games, just missed hitting for the cycle by a single.
2014 Louisville Slugger Division I National Player of the Week
Feb. 11 – Griffin Joiner – Kentucky – Jr. – C – Hopkinsville, Ky.
Feb. 18 – Bryana Walker – Washington – Sr. – P – La Quinta, Calif.
Feb. 25 – Anna Miller (Co-) – USC Upstate – Sr. – P – Portland, Ore.
Ally Carda (Co-) – UCLA – Jr. – P/UTIL – Elk Grove, Calif.
March 4 – Lacey Waldrop – Florida State – Jr. – P – Chester, Va.
March 11 – Dallas Escobedo – Arizona State – Sr. – P – Glendale, Ariz.
March 18 – Sydney O’Hara – Syracuse – Fr. – P/OF/1B – Cicero, N.Y.
March 25 – Jaclyn Traina (Co-) – Alabama – Sr. – P/UTIL – Naples, Fla.
Sammy Marshall (Co-) – Western Illinois – Jr. – SS/OF – Naperville, Ill.
April 1 – Cheridan Hawkins – Oregon – So. – P – Anderson, Calif.
April 8 – Katiyana Mauga – Arizona – Fr. – 3B – San Diego, Calif.
April 15 – Michelle Mueller – Wisconsin – Sr. – IF – La Crosse, Wis.
