This week's Missouri Valley Conference softball players of the week include C Sydney Porter of Southern Illinois; P Maya Johnson of Belmont; and P Hailey Lucas of Southern Illinois.

KEY LINKS
National Statistics  |  Ranking Summary
Softball Record Books  |  MVC Softball Records (PDF)
MVC Standings  |  MVC Individual Stat Leaders  |  MVC Team Stat Leaders

MVC Player of the Week
C Sydney Potter, Southern Illinois, Jr.
Potter, in her first week as a Saluki, homered in all five games she played in during SIU's 5-0 run at the FGCU Kickoff Classic. Potter finished the week with a .471 batting average, 1.938 OPS, five home runs, and 11 RBI. The junior catcher also recorded a 1.412 SLG and .526 OBP to go along with one double and two walks. Potter had two multi-hit games, tallying three hits, one home run, and three RBI vs. Charlotte on Feb. 7 and two hits, one home run, and two RBI vs. Ball State on Feb. 8.

MVC Pitcher of the Week
P Maya Johnson, Belmont, R-Sr.
Johnson had a 2-0 week for the Bruins, throwing 14 innings with 27 strikeouts, and she allowed just one run in her two outings. Friday vs. Missouri State she threw a perfect game, pitching 7.0 innings with 15 strikeouts while allowing no hits, no walks, and no runs on just 83 pitches. Against No. 15 Georgia Johnson e earned a Top-25 victory, striking out 12 over 7.0 innings in the program’s first-ever win against an SEC opponent.

MVC Newcomer of the Week
C Sydney Potter, Southern Illinois, Jr.
Potter, in her first week as a Saluki, homered in all five games she played in during SIU's 5-0 run at the FGCU Kickoff Classic. Potter finished the week with a .471 batting average, 1.938 OPS, five home runs, and 11 RBI. The junior catcher also recorded a 1.412 SLG and .526 OBP to go along with one double and two walks. Potter had two multi-hit games, tallying three hits, one home run, and three RBI vs. Charlotte on Feb. 7 and two hits, one home run, and two RBI vs. Ball State on Feb. 8.

MVC Freshman of the Week
P Hailey Lucas, Southern Illinois, Fr.
Lucas made her first two appearances as a Saluki this past weekend at the FGCU Kickoff Classic and did not allow a run against the hosts, FGCU, and Ball State. Against FGCU, Lucas tossed a complete-game shutout, allowing just two hits, no runs, and no walks with five strikeouts across 7.0 IP. Lucas then allowed three hits, no runs, two walks, and recorded a strikeout in 2.2 scoreless innings vs. Ball State on Feb. 8.


TOP STORYLINES

• Belmont capped off day three of the Red and Black Showcase with a historic 2-1 victory over No. 15 Georgia on Sunday afternoon at Jack Turner Stadium. The win marked Belmont's first victory over an SEC opponent and a top-25 win at the national level. 
• Valpo is 4-0 through four games for the fifth time in program history, and just the second time against all D-I opponents. The 2017 squad started 5-0 for the best start by a Valpo team, while the 1986, 2000 and 2002 teams all faced at least two non D-I opponents en route to a 4-0 start.
• Southern Illinois' (5-0) hot start to the season continued on Sunday, blanking both Ball State, 4-0, and Long Island, 7-0. In five games at the Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) Kickoff Classic, Southern Illinois went a perfect 5-0 and did not allow a run in three games.
• Ari O’Connell of UIC went 5-for-13 though five games, with a double, a home run, three runs, three RBIs, and two stolen bases. The freshman played a crucial rule in the Flames 5-4 win against Purdue, their first over a Big 10 team since 2018, as she hit the game tying home run in the fifth inning.
• Madison Vrastil of Valpo broke Valpo's single-game stolen bases record, swiping four bags without being caught in its Saturday win over Green Bay - a game where she went 3-for-4 with three runs scored.
• Belmont's Rylee Spindler hit a first-inning, two-run home run that accounted for the only hit of the game and provided the decisive runs in the Top-25 win over No. 15. Georgia
• UNI's Kate Lappe batted .533 on the weekend with eight hits in 15 at-bats. She scored six runs and batted in seven with her three home runs, three doubles, and five walks.
• In five games last weekend, Morgan Schlosser of Bradley hit safely in four games, finishing with 11 hits in 18 at-bats, good for a .611 batting average and a .554 Slugging Percentage. Schlosser delivered a huge weekend at the plate, including her first career home run and a career-high two triples, while totaling two home runs, seven runs scored, and six RBIs.
• Sydney McDermott of Valpo was lights out on opening weekend, picking up three of Valpo's four wins at the DePaul Dome Tournament with a 0.58 ERA, a .171 batting average against and 17 strikeouts in 12 innings of work. She was nearly perfect in the season-opening win over Detroit Mercy, as a looping liner which tipped off the end of the glove of a leaping shortstop was the only thing between McDermott and a perfect game - in the end, she settled for a one-hit shutout with nine strikeouts against the Titans.