ORLANDO (UCFKnights.com) – UCF Softball is being recognized for its historic start to the 2020 campaign as the American Athletic Conference has named Justene Molina and Alea White the league's Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively.
White appeared in three games on Opening Weekend as UCF went 5-1 in The Black and Gold Tournament hosted at the UCF Softball Complex. She was a Knightmare for opposing batters all weekend, tossing six scoreless innings opening night against Indiana and striking out eight to lead the Knights to victory. In four total appearances, White had 19 innings pitched, 24 strikeouts, allowed just four earned runs and was 3-0.
Over the weekend, White made her 100th career start for UCF when she took the circle against Duke and is now just the fifth UCF pitcher to reach 700+ innings in her career. Her season ERA now sits at 1.47. When White made the start on opening day, she became just the second pitcher in UCF history to start three straight opening days (Allison Kime, '06-'08). It was also her 16th career shutout, moving her to fifth all-time in the UCF record books. The Pitcher of the Week honor marks her 9th time earning the award as she earned it four times in both the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Earning her first career conference Player of the Week, Justene Molina was the backbone of a Knights' attack that posted a record-high 40 combined runs in the team's first six games. The junior transfer from Boise State slashed .600/.647/.943 with a home run (the first in her UCF career) and 10 RBI to lead UCF to a 5-1 record on the weekend, including four wins over Power6 opponents. In six games, Molina had nine hits and 10 RBI, a triple and 14 total bases. It seemed like Molina was on base every time you looked up over the weekend as she had three multi-hit games and hits in five out of six games.
After the weekend, Molina now leads the Knights in batting average, OPS, slugging percentage, total bases, and RBI just to name a few.
The last time the Knights earned both Player and Pitcher of the Week honors in the same week was May 8, 2017 when Alea White and Cassady Brewer each earned the award.
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ON DECK
The Knights will be back at The Plex Wednesday, February 12 for a showdown with the number one overall nationally ranked Washington Huskies. First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 pm ET. Fans can purchase tickets for the Washington contest online here.
TICKETS FOR 2020
Fans can purchase tickets for the 2020 UCF softball season by calling (407) 823-1000 or online here.
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Stay tuned to UCF Softball on Facebook (/UCFSoftball), Twitter (@UCF_Softball) and Instagram (@UCF.Softball) for the latest on the UCF Softball team.
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