Laura Winter claimed her first career BIG EAST Softball Player of the Week award Monday

Winter Earns First Career BIG EAST Player Of The Week Honor

April 29, 2013

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – University of Notre Dame junior Laura Winter has been named the BIG EAST Conference Softball Player of the Week, the league office announced Monday.

It was the fourth award earned by Winter in the past two weeks, as the pitcher/first baseman was recently named USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Week, BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week and College Sports Madness BIG EAST Softball Player of the Week April 15-21. College Sports Madness also selected Winter as its BIG EAST Softball Player of the Week for the second straight week Monday night.

Winter (San Diego, Calif./Rancho Bernardo) made her fifth appearance of the season on the BIG EAST weekly citation list after being recognized as the conference’s top pitcher twice (March 11 and April 22) and chosen for the league’s honor roll on two occasions (March 18 and March 25).

Winter enjoyed her second consecutive productive week in the cleanup spot of the Notre Dame order, batting .467 (7-for-15) with a team-high two home runs, eight RBI, 13 total bases, a .867 slugging percentage and a .526 on-base percentage. After contributing an RBI single in game one of a Tuesday doubleheader against Connecticut, Winter logged a 2-for-3 outing with two RBI in game two to aid the Irish in sweeping the Huskies.

Winter kept the momentum rolling into game one Saturday at DePaul, going 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBI. She then made the most of her first at-bat in game two against Blue Demon ace and BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week Kirsten Verdun, depositing her career-high 14th home run of the season deep and gone over the left field fence in the top of the first inning. DePaul walked Winter on 12 straight pitches in her subsequent three plate appearances. Winter added a base hit up the middle in Sunday’s series finale.

Notre Dame closes its 2013 non-conference schedule with a 5 p.m. first pitch Tuesday against Eastern Michigan at Melissa Cook Stadium before traveling to Western Michigan Wednesday for a 4 p.m. start.

2013 Notre Dame Softball BIG EAST Weekly Honorees

BIG EAST Player of the Week
Laura Winter: April 29
Emilee Koerner: March 25
Emilee Koerner: Feb. 25

BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week
Laura Winter: April 22
Laura Winter: March 11

BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Casey Africano: April 15
Jenna Simon: April 8
Laura Winter: March 25
Katey Haus: March 18
Laura Winter: March 18
Emilee Koerner: March 4
Jenna Simon: Feb. 11

–ND–