KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association announced its second Softball Hitter and Pitcher of the Week award winners for the 2024 season.
MIAA Hitter of the Week – Alexis Dial, Emporia State
Alexis Dial hit .727 with an OPS of 2.272 as the Hornets went 3-0 to run their winning streak to six games. In 11 at-bats, Dial totaled nine RBI and scored four runs in the first three games of the ESU Classic and gave the Hornets the go-ahead RBI in all three wins. Dial went 3-for-4 with a double, a home run, four RBI and two runs scored in ESU’s 13-6 win over Wayne State to start the tournament. She then went 2-for-3 with a triple, a homer, three RBI and two runs scored against UMary. The junior outfielder ended the week going 3-for-4 with two RBI in the Hornets 7-0 victory over Wayne State.
MIAA Pitcher of the Week – Jayda VanAckeren, Emporia State
Jayda VanAckeren tossed the first 7.0 inning complete game shutout of her career and the first Hornet shutout of any kind since 2022 in Emporia State’s 7-0 win over Wayne State at the ESU Classic. After giving up a leadoff single, VanAckeren recorded a double play and a ground out to start of string of retiring nine straight Wildcats. The Hornet pitching staff has not allowed a run in 14.1 innings.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
Hitters
Jaycee Ginter – Washburn
Jaycee Ginter batted .857 for the weekend with six hits in seven at bats as Washburn went 2-1 at the Raising Canes Festival in Edmond, Oklahoma. this past weekend. Ginter recorded a run scored and a double while driving in three over the weekend with seven total bases.
Emily Perry – Missouri Southern
Emily Perry started in all five games for the Lions this weekend at the Raising Canes Festival. Perry posted a .500 batting average win seven hits in 14 at bats. Her weekend was highlighted with six RBI and two homeruns in the Lions 5-2 win over Southeastern Oklahoma State.
Pitchers
Savanah Egger – Fort Hays State
Savanah Egger helped Fort Hays State to a split of its games at the Raising Canes Softball Festival in Oklahoma this past week. Egger threw her second complete-game shutout of the season at Southern Nazarene, then backed that with another complete-game win against East Central. She did not allow earned runs in 13 of her 14 innings pitched and held opponents to a .173 batting average for the week. She struck out eight batters in her shutout of Southern Nazarene.
ALSO NOMINATED
Hitters: Mary Chvatal (Nebraska Kearney), Peyton Shepard (Fort Hays State), McKenna Johnson (Central Oklahoma), Callie Yellin (Rogers State)
Pitchers: Terin Ritz (Central Oklahoma), Natalie Bates (Missouri Southern), Sara Llamas-Howell (Rogers State), Sadie Walker (Washburn)
2024 MIAA SOFTBALL HITTERS OF THE WEEK
WEEK ONE: Heather Arnett – Pittsburg State
WEEK TWO: Kaylee Wagner – Washburn
WEEK THREE: Alexis Dial – Emporia State
2024 MIAA SOFTBALL PITCHERS OF THE WEEK
WEEK ONE: Sara Llamas-Howell – Rogers State
WEEK TWO: Savanah Egger – Fort Hays State
WEEK THREE: Jayda VanAckeren – Emporia State