April 16, 2007
NORMAL, Ill. -
Earning her first such honor of the season, Illinois State softball sophomore Amber Smith has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week, the league office announced Monday. The distinction is the third in Smith's career and the award marks the second time this season a Redbird has earned the nod, as Jessie Buker was named to the same post on March 19.
Smith had a breakout week for the No. 19 Illinois State softball team, batting at a .533 clip, tallying eight hits in 15 at bats, including a pair of doubles and four home runs for 22 total bases. The Illinois State career home runs leader (28) also collected five RBI and posted a slugging percentage of 1.467 on the week.
Smith's performance was highlighted by her 6-for-7 weekend at Valley foe Drake, where the utility player turned in a batting average of .857 through three games, pounding three homers for 16 total bases and a slugging percentage of 2.286. Smith was one of three `Birds to hit two home runs in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Bulldogs for a school single-game record of six homers. She helped make Redbird history when the two-time all-American hit the third consecutive home run in the sixth inning, a feat never before accomplished at ISU, as the `Birds went on to win, 11-4.
In Sunday's victory that secured the sweep over Drake, Smith's sixth inning home run, her third on the weekend, knotted the score at 4-4 before ISU took the lead, 5-4. Defensively, the Redbird first baseman led the team with 50 putouts and committed just a single error for a .981 fielding percentage.
Smith and the Redbirds return to action on Tuesday, traveling to Illinois for the third meeting of the season with the Fighting Illini. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m. from Eichelberger Field in Urbana, Ill.
