BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. – West Liberty University softball pitching ace Makenzie Amend has been selected as the Mountain East Conference Pitcher of the Week after going 3-0 in the circle last week for Coach Herb Minch’s two-time defending MEC champion Hilltoppers.
A returning All-American from Wheeling, W.Va. who already holds numerous school and MEC records, Amend continued to draw national recognition with some incredible numbers last week. The hard-throwing righthander struck out a whopping 34 batters in 19 innings of work, giving up just 5 hits and 3 bases on balls in upping her season record to 8-3.
The West Liberty veteran leads the nation with an average of 12.3 strikeouts per 7-inning game and ranks among the Top 5 nationally with just 3.63 hits allowed per 7 innings. Her miniscule 0.77 WHIP ratio (Walks plus Hits divided by Innings Pitched) ranks No. 8 among all NCAA Division II pitchers.
Amend and her Hilltopper teammates return to action on Wednesday when they host Ohio County rival Wheeling in an afternoon doubleheader at the WLU Softball Complex. First game is set for 4 p.m.