May 8, 2001
Freshman righthander Kristin Schmidt (Houston, Texas) was named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week for the third time this season and second week in a row by the conference office on Monday. Schmidt went 2-0 last week with victories over Villanova and Rutgers, becoming just the third BIG EAST pitcher to go through the conference season without giving up a single run.
Schmidt finished off a great freshman conference campaign with two more shutout victories over the weekend against Villanova and Rutgers. She tossed her eighth one-hitter of the season against the Wildcats on Friday, surrendering just a pop-fly hit in the sixth inning.
She returned to the mound the next day to give up just four hits while striking out eight in a complete-game shutout victory at Rutgers. Schmidt ends the BIG EAST regular season giving up just 24 hits (2.4 per game) and striking out 77 (7.7 per game). Her overall team-leading ERA is now 0.40.
Schmidt and her teammates will begin post season action on Thursday against Seton Hall in the first round of the BIG EAST Softball Championship. The Irish-Pirates matchup is set for 1:30 p.m. at Sullivan Field in Villanova, Pa.