March 29, 2005
LAS VEGAS - Marissa Nichols and Jacque Kerrigan were chosen as this week's Mountain West Conference Player and Pitcher of the Week for their play at the Stanford Invitational. This is the second instance this season that both have been chosen as the recipients of the awards in the same week. Kerrigan's selection is the sixth of the senior's career, while Nichols, a freshman, has four total on the season.
Nichols selection sets a new mark in for the softball program, as no player/pitcher has won it more than three times in any given year.
Nichols hit a team-high .714 (10-for-14) with seven extra base hits (three home runs, three doubles and one triple). She plated eight RBI, while crossing home seven times herself. She amassed 24 total bases and held a slugging percentage of 1.714 with an on-base percentage of .778. She stole two bases on the weekend to give her a perfect 22-for-22 on the base paths this season. With hits in all five games, she lengthened her team-best hitting streak to 10 games.
In UNLV's first game of the Invitational against Illinois, Nichols went 4-for-4 with a double and a home run. She plated five RBI and scored two runs, as well. Against #24 Northwestern, she went 1-for-2 at the plate with her lone hit clearing the right field fence. She walked once and proceeded to hurt the Wildcats by stealing second and eventually scoring the winning run in a 2-1 contest. Nichols was responsible for UNLV's first two runs against the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine in a 2-for-3 (double and triple) performance. She plated the Rebels' first run to tie the game at one with a triple. She scored the go-ahead run on an errant throw by UH's catcher. She got the Rebels off to a good start with the first run of the game after leading off with a double versus Saint Mary's. She knocked her third ball out of Smith Family Stadium with solo shot in the third. After the home run, she was walked twice and stole a base, as well. In the finale of the Invitational, against the #6 Cardinal, she recorded a single to extend her hitting streak to 10 games. Nichols currently leads the MWC in batting average (.475), slugging percentage (.907), on-base percentage (.533), runs scored (38), hits (56), RBI (29), triples (6), stolen bases (22) and total bases (107), and is second in doubles (12) and home runs (nine).
Kerrigan posted three victories in four appearances at the Invitational. She struck out four, while giving up four earned runs and 21 hits in 24.0 innings of work. Against Illinois she struck out four batters, scattered two hits and gave up no earned runs in 4.0 innings. In a match with 20th-ranked Northwestern, Kerrigan allowed seven hits and struck out seven. Versus Hawaii she struck out four and gave up four hits. On the season, Kerrigan is 15-11 with a 1.90 ERA and 119 strikeouts in 143.2 innings in the circle. She currently leads the conference in innings pitched (143.2), wins (15) and appearances (29).
