Sophomore pitcher Whitney Kiihnl was named Atlantic Sun Player of the Week on Monday.
MACON, Ga. – USC Upstate’s Crislyn Chewning earned her first A-Sun Softball Player of the Week accolade after a tremendous week in which she lead USC Upstate at the plate with a .589 batting average, while Lipscomb’s Whitney Kiihnl tallied her fifth career A-Sun Softball Pitcher of the Week honor and fourth on the season after recording three shutouts against UNF, Jacksonville and Western Kentucky.
Chewning collected three triples in six games and recorded four multi-hit games in six outings last week, including three-hit contests against A-Sun foes FGCU and Stetson. The Willamina, Ore. native posted four hits and four RBIs in the doubleheader sweep at Gardner-Webb and had three hits, two runs and a RBI in second game against FGCU. Chewning also collected three hits with a double and a triple in the 7-2 victory versus Stetson, in addition to two runs and a RBI. The senior center fielder recorded USC Upstate’s only hit in the second game against the Hatters.
In addition to Kiihnl’s three shutouts, 4-0 at Western Kentucky Tuesday, 4-0 at Jacksonville Friday, 3-0 at UNF Saturday, the sophomore pitcher surrendered a total of seven hits and struck out 28.
courtesy of LipscombSports.com
Kiihnl owns a total of nine games this season with double-digit strikeouts, including 11 against the Ospreys and 10 against the Hilltoppers in the past week. The Batesville, Miss. native threw a one-hitter against Jacksonville, barely missing her fifth no-hitter of the season, and allowed two hits against Western Kentucky.
Kiihnl owns a 19-2 record for the season and holds shutouts against all four conference teams she has faced for a 0.00 A-Sun earned run average. The Lady Bisons have 19 shutouts as a team, an NCAA era school record, breaking last year’s record of 17.
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The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.
This release is provided by the Atlantic Sun Conference media relations department.