April 19, 2011

LOS ANGELES - LMU's four-game sweep of Santa Clara has led to another sweep for the Lions as freshman Kathryn Dutton and sophomore Molly Medeiros were named the Pacific Coast Softball Conference Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for April 11-17, the conference office announced Tuesday. This is the fourth time this season that two LMU players have swept the weekly awards as Dutton picks up her first career honor and Medeiros takes home her second.

Dutton (San Diego, Calif.) was instrumental in LMU's first four-game sweep of the season, becoming the seventh player in PCSC history to homer in three straight games and driving in at least one run in each of the four games at Santa Clara. Dutton got the weekend off to a flying start, setting new career-highs with three hits and five RBI in the opening game. With LMU leading 1-0, she connected on her second grand slam of the season and later added an RBI single to become the third Lion to drive in five runs in a game this season. Dutton also joined teammate Kelly Sarginson and Utah Valley's Amanda Perez as the only players in the PCSC to hit two grand slams this year.

In Saturday's game two, she went deep again and she made it three straight games with a homer in Sunday's game one, hitting a two-run shot. Dutton capped the weekend with the go-ahead RBI single with two outs in the bottom of the sixth as LMU rallied to complete the Sweep. For the week, Dutton hit .429 and raised her season batting average from .197 to .233. She also played stellar behind the plate, helping the Lion pitchers post a 0.78 ERA in the series.

Medeiros (Saratoga, Calif.) had an impressive homecoming, running her consecutive win streak in games in which she has started to five, while having a hand in all four of LMU's victories at Santa Clara. Playing just three miles from the house she grew up in, she finished the week 2-0 with a 0.42 ERA and a save while posting a 12:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. On Saturday, she tossed her second straight complete-game shutout, becoming the PCSC's first 10-game winner by stifling Santa Clara to just three hits while striking out eight. Medeiros did not allow a runner past first base in the entire game. Later that day, she came on in relief as LMU's lead was slipping away and halted the Broncos' rally to complete the doubleheader sweep. On Sunday, Medeiros would pick up her second save of the season with two innings of one-hit relief in game two. She completed the weekend with her 11th complete game of the year, a four-hitter, to run her record to 11-5 on the year.

At 7-1 in the PCSC, LMU sits in a tie with San Diego atop the Coastal Division standings. The Lions take their final road trip of the regular season this weekend, heading to Sacramento State for a four-game series beginning Friday at noon.