Jacobs alum Lach lauded at Butler
Jacobs graduate Alyssa Lach, a freshman infielder on the Butler University softball team, recently was named the Big East Conference player of the week.
Lach helped Butler go 4-0 during the award period. During that time frame, Lach had the conference's best batting average at .692 and league-highs in on-base percentage (. 789) and slugging percentage (1.154) and doubles (3). Lach had 7 RBI and 4 extra-base hits, while scoring give runs and striking out once in 13 at-bats.
Lach also was hit by a pitch five times during the span, three more than the No. 2 player in the conference. Lach helped Butler capture its first series sweep of the season, outscoring Georgetown 20-1 in a 3-game stretch.
Through midweek, Lach was hitting .290 with 36 hits in 124 at-bats. She had 18 runs scored, 10 doubles, 4 homers, 20 RBI and 15 walks. In Big East Conference play, Lach's averaged had soared to .457.
Perryman hits two milestones: Another day and more milestones for Elgin High alum Hannah Perryman, now a junior pitching standout at nationally ranked Missouri-St. Louis.
Perryman tossed her third perfect game this season in the opener of a Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader against Drury.
The three perfect games ties an NCAA Division II single-season record. It was her fourth career perfect game, which ties the Division II career record.
Additionally, the gem upped Perryman's career no-hitters to seven, which ranks as the fourth-most in Division II history.
Perryman fanned 12 in the game to go over the 1,000 career strikeout mark. She finished the game at 1,008 career strikeouts. UMSL won that opening game by a 9-0 count.
Perryman's effort helped net her a Louisville Slugger/NFCA co-national pitcher of the week honor.
Perryman allowed 1 hit in 13 innings of work and struck out 27 batters (opponent batting average of .029) during the award period.
"I'm really excited to be named pitcher of the week because everyone on my team helped contribute to it," Perryman told the school's website. "We worked really hard to prepare for the weekend and it really showed. I've been throwing to our hitters a lot, which is incredibly helpful because they are so good. They help me feel prepared and confident in the circle."
UMSL coach Brian Levin added: "When you have a pitcher who has led the country for three years in strikeouts per game you start to take things for granted. However, when you consider how difficult it is to throw a perfect game, for her to throw her third in a season is really astonishing. Hannah is one of those rare players who truly gets more joy from winning and watching her teammates' success than from any accolade she has received."
Murphy at UT-Martin: South Elgin and Elgin Community College alum Mike Murphy is now playing at Tennessee-Martin. Through midweek Murphy had played in 33 games and registered 29 hits, 4 doubles and 8 RBI to go with 16 runs scored. He had made 4 errors in the field in 66 chances for a UT-Martin team that was 11-26 overall.
Buddle at James Madison: South Elgin graduate Alyssa Buddle is a freshman catcher on the red-hot James Madison University softball team. James Madison came into the week ranked in the Top 25 in both the major Division I softball polls with a 37-6 overall record (28-game winning streak). James Madison also was 14-0 in Colonial Athletic Association play.
Through midweek Buddle had played in 27 games (18 starts) and was hitting .283 with 13 hits in 46 at-bats. She had 3 doubles, a triple, two homers and 9 RBI to go with 6 walks and a .522 slugging percentage.
Perkins at Chicago State: Huntley and Elgin Community College product Jake Perkins is a sophomore on the Chicago State baseball team. Perkins recently was the hard-luck losing pitcher in Chicago State's 2-1 loss to North Dakota. Perkins lost despite allowing only 2 runs on 4 hits. He struck out 6 in 8 innings of work.
Cardinal-Stritch softball update: A pair of Bartlett High School alums are playing roles on the successful and nationally ranked Cardinal-Stritch women's softball team.
Tori Burke is a junior pitcher for Stritch and was 18-1 in the circle through midweek with a 1.03 ERA. She had 16 complete games and 5 solo shutouts to her credit. In 129 innings of work she had allowed 102 hits, while striking out 108 against only 22 walks. In 489 at-bats against her, opponents were hitting only .209.
Rachel Odolski is a sophomore outfielder on the team who was hitting .287 in 41 games through midweek. She had 31 hits in 108 at-bats to go with 23 runs scored, 3 doubles, 2 triples, a homer and 8 RBI. In the field she had made only 1 error in 74 chances.
Stritch, ranked No. 19 in the country among NAIA schools, was 41-7 and 18-2 in conference through midweek.
Smith at Rockford: Bartlett graduate and Elgin Community College alum Robert Smith is a junior center fielder on the Rockford University baseball team. Through midweek Smith was batting .333 with 43 hits in 129 at-bats. His 43 hits ranked second on the team and he was leading the squad with 32 runs scored. He also had 8 doubles, 15 RBI and a team-high 13 stolen bases to go with a .428 on-base percentage.
Polites at UIC: Cary-Grove product Eleni Polites continues to hit well for the UIC softball team. Through midweek, Polites was hitting .354 after 34 games of action. She had 34 hits in 96 at-bats and had scored 19 runs. Included in those 34 hits were 4 doubles and 2 triples. She also had 8 RBI, a team-best 7 sacrifices and was 7 of 8 in stolen-base attempts. UIC was 19-17 overall and 10-4 in Horizon League play through midweek.
Buhmann at Central Methodist: South Elgin's Jake Buhmann is a member of the Central Methodist (Mo.) baseball team. The Elgin Community College alum was hitting .301 in 38 games played through midweek. He had 31 hits in 103 at-bats to go with 6 doubles, a homer and 14 RBI. Central Methodist was 24-23 overall.
Off at College wants your help: Send information and/or statistics on Fox Valley-area athletes playing collegiately to Mike Miazga at mjm890@gmail.com.