DePaul University Athletics
Becca Heteniak Named BIG EAST Conference Pitcher of the Week
4/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | SOFTBALL
PROVIDENCE, R.I. The BIG EAST Conference has named DePaul sophomore Becca Heteniak softball Pitcher of the Week and Notre Dame's Sarah Smith Player of the Week.
Heteniak earns her second Pitcher of the Week honor following a 7-0 week in which she threw 43.1 innings in eight games with 53 strikeouts. The sophomore All-American held the opposing batters to a .114 batting average, and allowed just two earned runs for a 0.32 ERA on the week. Heteniak threw her third career no-hitter in the Blue Demon's 5-0 win over Illinois-Chicago on April 24, in addition to an eight inning, 1-0 shutout against Loyola-Chicago on April 23. She also combined for a 2-0 shutout over Connecticut on April 26 and an 8-0 shutout against Providence on April 27. With 53 strikeouts (8.6 per seven innings) last week, the hurler has 210 Ks this season and moved into fifth all-time on DePaul's single-season strikeout list. Heteniak also had a strong showing from the plate, going 8-for-22 with 10 RBIs, six hits, three home runs and two doubles for a .364 batting average.
Smith becomes the second ND infielder to earn Player of the Week honors. The senior second baseman went 14-for-28 in eight games with seven runs, four stolen bases, two RBIs and two doubles for a .538 batting average.
No. 23 DePaul (40-14 overall, 13-5 BIG EAST) has a nine-game winning streak heading in to the last weekend of conference action. The Blue Demons currently sit in second place in the league standings and are one game behind league-leading USF (40-17, 14-4).
Before hitting the road for their final conference weekend, the Blue Demons host the DePaul Softball Invitational. DePaul welcomes No. 1 Alabama and No. 12 Northwestern for a three-game tournament on Tuesday, April 29 in Lincoln Park. The Blue Demons tangle with the Crimson Tide at 3 p.m. and the Wildcats at 5 p.m.
