Ferris State Softball Pitcher Kayle Stevenson Recognized By GLIAC
Ferris State University's senior pitcher Kayle Stevenson (Holland/West Ottawa) was chosen as this week's Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Pitcher of the Week, the conference announced on Monday (April 26), for her performance in last week's action on the diamond.
Stevenson went 3-0 in the pitching circle with a 0.67 earned run average in 21.0 innings pitched in helping Ferris State register a 5-2 record for the week. The Bulldogs won three of four conference road encounters against a pair of nationally-ranked opponents in Saginaw Valley State and Wayne State
The southpaw tossed a three-hit shutout in a complete-game 2-0 league victory over 17th-ranked Saginaw Valley State last Saturday (April 24) in a two-game series sweep. She then followed up the performance by scattering five hits in pitching Ferris State to a 2-1 conference triumph versus ninth-ranked Wayne State on Sunday (April 25).
Stevenson, a 2009 All-GLIAC Second-Team selection, not only posted an undefeated record this past week but held the opposition to a .213 batting average as FSU registered a team 1.52 earned run average. The two-time (2008-09) GLIAC All-Academic Team honoree and a 2009 Division II Athletics Directors Association Academic Achievement Award recipient has won her last seven outings to date and has tallied a 0.61 earned run average in 46.0 innings during that span.
This season, Stevenson has produced an 11-6 record while notching a 1.82 earned run average (30 earned runs) in 115.2 innings for 18 appearances. She has totaled five shutouts, 75 strikeouts, and limited the Bulldogs' opponents to a .196 batting average.
For her career, Stevenson is 26-8 in the pitching circle with a 1.46 earned run average (53 earned runs allowed) in 254.2 innings for 53 contests. Among Ferris State's all-time pitching leaders, Stevenson is currently first in best winning percentage (.765), seventh in earned run average, 10th in strikeouts (179), 12th in wins, 13th in appearances, tied for 15th in complete games (26), and 17th in innings pitched.
The conference honor represents the second in Stevenson's career as she earned weekly league pitching plaudits last season on one occasion (April 20).
Ferris State, which is currently 23-15 overall and 14-8 in the GLIAC this season, visits the Northwood Timberwolves this Tuesday (April 27) in a conference doubleheader at Midland, Mich. The opener begins at 3 p.m. (EDT) with the nightcap to follow around 5:30 p.m. (EDT).