CASEY HAMMONS NAMED GSC WEST DIVISION PITCHER OF THE
WEEK FOR THE SECOND CONSECUTIVE WEEK

        RUSSELLVILLE, Arkansas – Arkansas Tech’s Casey Hammons has been named the Gulf South Conference’s West Division Softball Pitcher of the Week for the second consecutive week and third time this season on Tuesday by the league office.

Hammons, a sophomore right-hander from Carthage, Texas, earns this week’s honor after collecting two wins and an earned run average of 0.00 against Ouachita Baptist last weekend. It was the fourth time this season the GSC has named a Golden Sun as the West Division Pitcher of the Week as senior Dana Aldrich (Palm Harbor, Fla.) was honored on Feb. 12 following her perfect game against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Hammons had been honored two times previously (Feb. 26 and March 17) this season.

“Another outstanding week for Casey and our pitching staff,” Golden Suns Head Coach Gidget Pambianchi said. “Casey has been very consistent this season and was really dominant last weekend in her two starts against OBU.”

Hammons earns this week’s honor after recording two wins and pitching two complete game shutouts against the Lady Tigers. For the week, Hammons pitched 14 innings and allowed just eight hits and struck out 10 opposing batters in helping Tech improve to 24-6 overall and 9-1 in the GSC West Division.

In Tech’s 1-0 win last Friday over OBU, Hammons tossed a complete game, allowing just four hits, while striking out seven and walking two and then followed that up with another seven inning shutout in Saturday’s 1-0 win. In Saturday’s game, Hammons allowed four hits and struck out three and didn’t walk a hitter.

On the season, Hammons is 12-2 with a team-best 1.66 ERA and in 20 appearances, she has made 14 starts and tossed nine complete games and had four shutouts and picked up three saves. In 92.2 innings of work, she has allowed 72 hits and 22 earned runs, while striking out 84 and walking 25.

In addition to Hammons, Arkansas-Monticello senior first baseman Meredith Heckel was named the West Division Player of the Week, while West Florida senior third baseman Nicky Van Camp and Valdosta State senior pitcher Kristen Lindsey were named the GSC East Division Player and Pitcher of the Week respectively.

Hammons and her Golden Sun teammates will return to action on Wednesday, March 26, when they travel to Pensacola, Fla., to play West Florida in a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. and then will play a doubleheader on Thursday, March 27 against the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh beginning at 9 a.m.

-- Tech Athletics --