LAS VEGAS, NV (UNLVRebels.com) – UNLV softball's big series win in San Diego over the weekend was rewarded with a sweep of the Mountain West weekly awards as senior Justine Federe was tabbed the player of the week and junior Jenny Bressler was named the pitcher of the week.
This is the second career weekly award for Federe and third overall for Bressler, while it marks the 22nd time since UNLV joined the Mountain West in 2000 that the Rebels have swept the honors. In 2021, Federe joins Samantha Diaz as a player of the week award winner with Diaz taking the first honors of the season on Feb. 16.
Bressler was brilliant in the circle in San Diego, pitching 19.2 of 25.2 total innings on the weekend with two complete games, 14 strikeouts, a shutout and just three earned runs allowed. The Canton, Michigan, native started game one and pitched a seven-inning gem for a 1-0 shutout, giving up just five hits with only one Aztec reaching scoring position. In game two, Bressler entered the game in the bottom of the seventh after the Rebels had rallied to tie it six in the top half of the frame and went on to pitch 3.2 innings in relief in extras without giving up an earned run. In Sunday's series rubber match, Bressler made her second start and pitched all nine innings of the extra-inning affair for her second win of the weekend, giving up just three earned runs and striking out eight.
Overall, the Rebel ace went 2-1 with a 1.07 ERA in the series victory and has allowed just four earned runs in her last 35.0 innings pitched.
Federe, who is back this season after her 2020 senior season was cut short, led the way at the plate in San Diego, hitting .400 (4-for-10) with two runs scored, three RBI and a solo home run. In the series opener, Federe scored the lone run of the game after drawing a walk to start the fourth inning and scoring on a RBI groundout for the 1-0 Rebel win. In game two, Federe went 2-for-5, delivering an RBI single in the first inning and hitting a single in the top of the seventh to spark a two-run game-tying rally by UNLV to send the game to extras. With the series up for grabs on Sunday, Federe put the Rebels ahead 1-0 with a solo home run in the first inning, then drove in a go-ahead run in the fifth on a sacrifice fly to center with UNLV going on to win the game 5-3 in nine innings.
The series victory in San Diego was UNLV's second straight at the home of the Aztecs (the 2020 series was not played), marking the program's first ever back-to-back series wins in San Diego. The Rebels are now 5-1 in league play and are tied for first with Fresno State in the Mountain West standings heading into their home series with San Jose State this weekend, April 2-3, at Eller Media Stadium.
