LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Lubbock Christian’s Brooke Makemson and Harding’s Lily Tanski were named 2021 Division II Louisville Slugger/NFCA Player and Wilson/NFCA Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for their outstanding performances for contests played Feb. 1-7.

Behind four home runs and 13 RBI, Makemson powered LCU to four home victories at the Lubbock Sports College Invitational. The senior shortstop hit .692 (9-for-13) with six extra-base hits (2B, 3B, 4 HR), slugged 1.846 and posted a .714 on-base percentage. Selected Lone Star Hitter of the Week, Makemson launched two homers and drove in five runs in the opener against Washburn, while adding a triple, long ball and four RBI against Fort Hays State. She also turned in a mistake-free defensive effort at short with nine putouts and 13 assists.

Tanski tossed a pair of four-hit shutouts as Harding went 4-0 at the UAH Charger Chillout. The Great American Conference Player of the Week blanked No. 10 Trevecca Nazarene and Shorter, fanning 15 and not issuing a walk over 14 innings of work. Against the 10th-ranked Trojans, Tanski struck out five, while she added a career-high 10 punchouts versus the Hawks.

Selected Top Performances
Kaylee Vaught, UAH – .636, 2 HR, 12 RBI, .571 OBP, 1.182 SLG; Alyssa LeBlanc, Texas A&M University-Commerce – 3-0, 0.00 ERA, 17 K, 3 BB, no-hitter vs. TAMIU; Taylor Franco, Lubbock Christian – 2-0, SV, 0.00 ERA, 2 H, 0 R, 14.1 IP, .045 opp. BA; Chelsea Blankenship, Harding- .533, 2B, 3 3B, 5 RBI, 4 R, 1.000 SLG, 1.000 FLD (22 PO, 4 A); Julie Gast, Lees-McRae- 2 GP, .571, 4 H, 4 RBI, HR, 1.000 SLG; Hannah Towery, Newberry- 2 GP, .500, 2 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 1.125 SLG; Savannah Foster, Tusculum- 1-0, 0.00 ERA, SHO, 8 K, 4 H; Ashley Autuori, Young Harris – .571, 2 2B, HR, 10 RBI, .929 SLG, .625 OBP; Kyra Gipson, Flagler- 2-0. 0.40 ERA, SV, 16 K, 2 BB, 17.2 IP.

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The NFCA named SAU Softball senior Christina Hill the Division II Player of the Week for her performances this past weekend at the Alvy Early Memorial Classic in Bentonville, the organization announced this afternoon.

The senior southpaw from Southlake was on fire this past weekend at the Alvy Early Memorial Classic, going 10-14 from the plate with five extra-base hits. She drove in 14 runs over the weekend and crossed the plate nine times herself. She slugged 1.286 for the weekend and owned an on-base percentage of .667.

In game one against Upper Iowa, the southpaw went 4-5 from the plate, scoring four runs and driving in five, with a bases-clearing double in the second inning, followed by an RBI single and RBI double in the fourth inning as the Muleriders set a new single-game record for runs in a game with 23.

Having a career game against the Peacocks, the right fielder managed to one-up herself in game two against Pittsburg State.

A single in the first inning, an RBI triple in the second inning, a bases-clearing double in the third inning and a grand slam in the fourth inning equaled the cycle for Hill, who drove in eight runs on the game. The eight RBIs marks a single-game SAU record and ties the GAC record for most in a single game.

Hill went 2-5 in day two against Northwest Missouri and Maryville, driving in a run via a sacrifice fly and scoring two runs.

On the season, the lefty is hitting .439 with 15 runs scored. She has ten extra-base hits – five doubles, three triples and two homeruns. She has driven in a team-high 20 runs and has 35 total bases, second on the team.

The senior is slugging .854 and has a .444 on-base percentage with a pair of sacrifice flies.

Hill has already tallied more hits, runs, doubles, triples, homeruns, RBIs and total bases through 12 games than she did in the entirety of the 2019 season (25 games-23 starts).

Hill becomes the ninth different Mulerider and the seventh in the Jason Anderson era to earn national player of the week honors, joining current teammates Elisa Favela and Victoria Taylor; as well as Maddie Dow, Brooke Goad, Kaylee Garner and Darian Harris. Additionally, Hanna Gill and Shelby Miller received the honors preceding Anderson’s time at Southern Arkansas.

Hill and the Muleriders open conference play this weekend as they host Harding in a four-game set.

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Harding University’s Autumn Humes was named the 2017 Schutt Sports / NFCA Division II National Freshman of the Year. She was presented the award on Wednesday evening at the NCAA Division II Championship banquet in Roanoke, Virginia.

A second-team NFCA All-American and first-team All-Central Region selection, Humes was key in helping the Lady Bisons put together a record-breaking season for the young program. The rookie hurler helped the second-ranked Lady Bisons in the circle and at the plate, hurling a no-hitter in Harding’s first-ever NCAA Tournament game and keying their run to the Super Regionals as the Central Region’s top seed. Additionally, she was instrumental in the HU’s 58-9 overall and 40-4 conference records, both program records.

Garnering the Great American Conference (GAC) Freshman of the Year award, Humes is tied for first in the NCAA with 16 shutouts, while her 33 wins and 292 strikeouts rank third and seventh, respectively. She posted a 33-3 mark with a 1.19 ERA and seven saves, leading the GAC in those categories, while also holding opponents to a .176 batting average. Offensively, the Bald Knob, Arkansas, native hit .346 with 10 doubles, seven homers and 53 RBIs.

The award was created in 2015 to honor the outstanding athletic achievement among freshmen softball student-athletes throughout Division II. Dixie State’s Janessa Basset was the inaugural recipient and Colorado Christian’s Charlotte Romero earned the honor in 2016.

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The National Fast Pitch Coaches Association has named Michelle Sorensen as the Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week.

Sorensen is the first pitcher in Henderson State history to receive the award and only the second player to be honored by the NFCA. Lindsey Causey earned NFCA National Player of the Week in 2004.

A two-time GAC Pitcher of the Week honoree this season, Sorensen was selected as Fast Pitch News National Pitcher of the Week earlier this week.

Sorensen threw her fourth no-hitter of her career in a 9-inning 1-0 victory over Southeastern Oklahoma. Sorensen’s 9-inning no-hitter was the first-ever in the Great American Conference history.

In the two games against Southeastern, Sorensen pitched 16 innings, struck out 19 batters, surrendered just three hits and did not allow an earned run in picking up her 10th win of the year.

Sorensen, Henderson’s all-time leader in wins (53), eclipsed the 500 strikeout plateau in her last outing and has run her HSU career record to 503 punch outs.
In the last seven days, Sorensen has recorded four complete game wins posting a 0.48 ERA.

Three of the wins were extra-inning victories. In 44.0 innings, Sorensen struck out 52 batters while allowing just three earned runs on 15 hits. In the four contests, opponents hit for a .105 average.

Henderson State will begin a four-game Great American Conference series on Saturday when the Reddies travel to Ada, Okla. to take on East Central with the first pitch slated for Noon.

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