University of Southern Indiana junior pitcher Jennifer Leonhardt (Louisville, Kentucky) was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week for Softball in an announcement by the league office Monday afternoon.
Leonhardt was instrumental in leading USI Softball to a 4-0 record in GLVC play this weekend. She went 2-0 in the circle with a 0.00 ERA, a .152 opponent batting average and 16 strikeouts in two appearances and 13.0 innings of work.
Against McKendree University on Saturday, Leonhardt scattered five hits across seven innings, striking out 10 batters en route to the complete-game victory. She followed that effort by carrying a no-hitter into the sixth inning of USI’s 7-0 game-one win over the University of Illinois Springfield Sunday.
Leonhardt finished the doubleheader with six strikeouts, giving up just two hits, in six innings of work before giving way to freshman hurler Katie Back (Indianapolis, Indiana), who pitched a scoreless seventh to preserve the shutout.
The biology major helped herself at the plate in all four games as she hit .556 (5-9) with two doubles, four sacrifices, three runs scored and a team-high six RBIs.
Leonhardt has been on fire as of late, holding the opposition scoreless in her last five appearances, or 30 and a third innings of work. She has not issued a walk in the last 35 innings.
On the year, Leonhardt is 10-3 with a 1.66 ERA, a .187 opponent batting average and 95 strikeouts. She also is hitting .390 with four doubles, a triple and 14 RBIs.
Monday’s honor marks the fifth time in Leonhardt’s career that she has earned GLVC Pitcher of the Week honors and the first since gathering the accolade last April.
USI (16-10, 4-0 GLVC) returns to action Saturday at noon when it visits Maryville University for a GLVC doubleheader in St. Louis, Missouri. The Eagles also visit the University of Missouri-St. Louis for a GLVC twinbill Sunday at noon. Both doubleheaders will be aired live on the GLVC Sports Network.
