Feb. 22, 2005
LAS VEGAS - The Rebels posted a 3-1 record over the weekend at the UNLV Invitational. Helping UNLV to those three victories and an 8-5 overall record were freshman Marissa Nichols and senior Jacque Kerrigan. Both players were named the Mountain West Conference's Player and Pitcher of the Week. This is the first career weekly honor for Nichols and the fifth for Kerrigan.
Nichols (Diamond Bar, Calif.) started all four games in left field for the Rebels at this past weekend's UNLV Invitational. She hit .533 (8-for-15) with four triples, a double, seven RBI and three runs scored. She began the UNLV Invitational with a 3-for-4 (two triples) performance against Iowa State, which included five RBI and a run scored. Against Southern Illinois, she one-upped herself with a perfect night in the batter's box (4-for-4) with two triples, an RBI and two runs scored. In the fourth inning, against Michigan State she scored the tying run of the game en route to UNLV's third win of the tournament. She amassed a 1.133 slugging percentage and a .533 on-base percentage in the four games. Currently, she leads the MWC in hits (23), RBI (13) and triples (4), and is fourth in the conference with a .479 batting average.
Kerrigan (Eugene, Ore.) pitched two complete game victories for the Rebels, striking out 10, while giving up four earned runs and 13 hits in 17.0 innings on the mound. Against Iowa State, she struck out two batters and allowed three hits in 5.0 innings in UNLV's 10-1 victory. In the win against Southern Illinois, she struck out eight and gave up for hits, while walking none. On the season, Kerrigan is 6-4 with a 1.52 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 64.2 innings pitched.
In the UNLV career record books: Kerrigan has moved up in the career categories with the addition of her 12 appearances in 2005. She ranks second in strikeouts (525) and career starts (102). Her 129 appearances are third-best and four away from tying for second. Her 662.2 IP sits as the third-highest innings pitched. Her 67 complete games are fourth-best, while her 51 wins sit in the fifth spot.
