Primetime Performers  (April 22-29, 2012)

RELEASE: May 2, 2012    
Contact: Pete LaFleur (editor@collegesoftball360.com)

ASU Shortstop Katelyn Boyd & Kentucky Pitcher Chanda Bell Headline Inaugural CSB360 Primetime Performers Honor Roll 

The inaugural weekly awards from CollegeSoftball360.com have been announced – headlined by Arizona State senior shortstop Katelyn Boyd (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Kentucky senior righthanded pitcher Chanda Bell (Indianapolis, Ind.). They are joined by 11 others in comprising the CSB360 Primetime Performers Weekly Honor Roll (for the week of April 23-29, 2012; all 13 listed below), with Boyd and Bell receiving top honors as the respective CSB360 Primetime Player of the Week and Primetime Pitcher of the Week. 

Player info. on all 13 honorees is included below (with action photos; headshots located in right-sidebar).

The Primetime Performer awards program – also utilized on affiliate sites CollegeBaseball360.com, CollegeSports360.com, CollegeSoccer360.com and CollegeFencing360.com – seeks to recognize players based on more than simple raw stats, instead also taking into account quality of opponent, contribution to team success and various situational factors (such as clutch play, all-around performance, leadership, adversity overcome, etc.).

Here are links to some earlier D-I softball players that received Primetime Performer designation during the first few weeks of the 2012 season, on CollegeSports360:

• Feb. 27 ... • Feb. 20 ... • Feb. 13

The 13 Primetime honorees include five other position players: Oregon sophomore 1B Kailee Cuico (San Pedro, Calif.) ... Lehigh senior 1B Julie Fernandez (Moorpark, Calif.) ... Texas junior RF Taylor Hoagland (Flower Mound, Texas) ... Central Florida senior SS Natalie Land (Mayo, Fla.) ... and Illinois freshman 3B Jess Perkins (Orland Park, Ill.).  

The six other pitchers among the Primetime honorees include: Georgia senior RHP Erin Arevalo (Lathrop, Calif.) ... Arkansas freshman LHP Kimmy Beasley (Formak, Ark.) ... Loyola (Chicago) sophomore LHP Brittany Gardner (Orland Park, Ill.) ... California junior RHP Jolene Henderson (Elk Grove, Calif.) ... Cornell sophomore RHP Alyson Onyon (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) ... and Georgia Tech junior two-way talent Hope Rush (Stockbridge, Ga.).

Katelyn Boyd A 230BOYD (pictured at right) continued to lead the way at the plate and in the field, as Arizona State posted a dominating series sweep at rpi #13 Washington (18-1, 6-3, 5-4). The lefthanded-hitting leadoff batter hit .545 during the series (6-for-11) and factored into 11 of her team's runs (7RBI-5R-HR), with eight times on-base (2BB) and a pair of home runs, as part of 13 total bases (1.273 slugging; 2 doubles.

She launched her pair of home runs in the opening blowout of the Huskies, highlighted by her second grand slam of the season in the 10-run top of the 5th (2-for-3, 6 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB). Boyd went on to score twice in gm-2 (3-4, 2B) before adding an RBI double in the third game (ASU's fourth sweep of the season).

The 3-0 road trip helped keep the Sun Devils (14-2; 42-5 overall) in the running for the Pac-12 title, matching the nation's top-ranked team California (16-2; 45-3) in the conference loss column. Boyd – who played error-free on 12 fielding chances during the series – became the became program's career leader in RBI (232) during the series opener and now is two shy of tying the ASU career doubles record (54). She hitting team-best .447 while also leading the Sun Devils in home runs (19, career-best), RBI (56), walks (40), stolen bases (17-of-18), hits (59), slugging (.977), on-base pct. (.581) and runs scored (61). Her impressive season includes 39 more "free passes" (40 BB, 5 HBP) than strikeouts (6) and grounding into only one double-play.

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BELL (pictured at left) came through in the clutch during the series at rpi #5 Florida (2-0, 0-5, 5-1), with Kentucky desperate for wins in its quest to surge above .500 and thus become eligible for the NCAA Tournament. The veteran pitcher won the series opener and finale, as the Wildcats became the first team to take an SEC series from the Gators this season.

In game-1, Bell posted a 4-hit shutout (BB-8K) vs. a Florida team that had been shut out only three times all season. She returned to the circle in the series-deciding game and racked up a season-high 13 strikeouts while again holding back the potent Gators offense. The 13 Ks are the 2nd-most all season by an opposing pitcher against Florida.

Bell finished the weekend with 21 strikeouts, only one walk and eight hits allowed in the 14 innings. She is nearing the 900-K career milestone (887), as the only Kentucky pitcher ever to total 150-plus strikeouts in all four seasons. Her season stats include a 2.61 ERA, .211 opp. batting avg. and 31 more strikeouts (178) than innings pitched (147.1).

Selection for these CollegeSoftball360 weekly awards is based on any/all of the following "primetime" criteria (i.e. not solely based on raw stats):

• Performed at a high level in a game/event that involves a top-40 RPI team; or excelled in games that are key to the team's postseason qualification.

• In general, preference is given based on the quality of the opponent, contribution to team success and situational factors involved in the competitor's accomplishments.

• Exhibited strong leadership and/or involved in clutch performances, such as gamewinning plays, noteworthy comebacks, late scores, momentum-shifting play, all-around performance, team spirit, etc.

• Overcame adversity or extreme circumstances (for the team and/or individual).

• Bonus consideration is given for key performances away from team's home venue and/or against a traditional rival (and for historic performances, on a national level).

PRIMETIME PERFORMERS OF THE WEEK
(for week of April 23-29, 2012 ... courtesy of CollegeSoftball360.com)

                "It's not so much what you do, as it is when you do it."

Erin Arevalo A 230

ERIN AREVALO
Georgia ... Sr. ... RHP ... #27
Lathrop, CA

Won marathon 1-0 battle vs. LSU (rpi-23), logging the full 15 innings with a career-best 15 Ks while facing "only" 49 batters  (4 over the minimum) ... took no-hitter into the 10th and ultimately allowed only one ball that reached the outfield, finishing with a dominating 1-hitter (plus 4 walks; 185 total pitches) ... kept putting zeroes on the board, while her team's offense was racking up 16 runners left-on-base ... the clutch win helped UGa claim the key SEC series (1-0, 6-1, 0-1) ... rematched opposite LSU's Rachele Fico (who also went the distance in gm-1) in the series finale, with the Tigers claiming that 1-0 final ... allowed 4 hits in series finale (4 Ks) ... has fashioned a 1.54 season ERA, with a 206 record, 37 more strikeouts (218) than innings pitched (181.1), a 5.6 K-to-walk ratio (218/39) and a .181 opp. batting avg. (119).  

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Kimmy Beasley A 230KIMMY BEASLEY
Arkansas ... Fr. ... LHP ... #8
Forman, AR

Led the way in the circle, as Razorbacks snapped 31-game losing streak vs. Alabama (rpi #2) that dated back to 2002 ... went the distance in that 8-1 gm-2 win, holding Crimson Tide to a pair of hits (3 Ks) ... appeared in all three games of the Alabama series, totaling 11 strikeouts in 17 innings (pushing her season K total to 91) ... first Arkansas player ever named SEC freshman of the week multiple times .... has posted 10 wins in her rookie season, with a 3.40 ERA in 113.1 innings.

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CHANDA BELL  (pictured at top of page)
Kentucky ... Sr. ... RHP ... #2
Indianapolis, IN

Came through in the clutch during series at rpi #5 Florida, with Kentucky desperate for wins in its quest to surge above .500 and thus become eligible for the NCAA Tournament ... won the opener and finale, as Wildcats became first team to take an SEC series from the Gators this season ... posted 4-hit shutout to win gm-1 (2-0; BB-8K), vs. Florida team that had been shut out only three times all season ... returned to the circle in series-deciding game and racked up a season-high 13 strikeouts while again holding back the potent Gators offense, in 5-1 win ... the 13 Ks are the 2nd-most all season by an opposing pitcher against Florida ... finished the weekend with 21 strikeouts, only one walk and eight hits allowed in the 14 innings ... nearing the 900-K career milestone (887), as the only Kentucky pitcher ever to total 150-plus strikeouts in all four seasons ... has a 2.61 season ERA, .211 opp. batting avg. and 31 more strikeouts (178) than innings pitched (147.1).

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KATELYN BOYD  (pictured at top of page)
Arizona State ... Sr. ... SS ... #17
Phoenix, AZ

Lefthanded-hitting leadoff batter who continued to lead the way at the plate and in the field, as ASU posted dominating series sweep at rpi #13 Washington (18-1, 6-3, 5-4) ... hit .545 during the series (6-for-11) and factored into 11 of her team's runs (7RBI-5R-HR), with eight times on-base (2BB) and a pair of home runs, as part of 13 total bases (1.273 slugging; 2 doubles) ... launched her pair of home runs in opening blowout, highlighted by her second grand slam of the season in 10-run top of the 5th (2-for-3, 6 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB) ...  went on to score twice in gm-2 (3-4, 2B) before adding an RBI double in third game (ASU's fourth sweep of the season) ... the 3-0 road trip helped keep Sun Devils (14-2; 42-5 overall) in running for Pac-12 title, matching the nation's top-ranked team California (16-2; 45-3) in the conference loss column ... played error-free on 12 fielding chances during the series ... became program's career leader in RBI (232) during the series opener and now two shy of tying the ASU career doubles record (54) ... hitting team-best .447 while also leading Sun Devils in home runs (19, career-best), RBI (56), walks (40), stolen bases (17-of-18), hits (59), slugging (.977), on-base pct. (.581) and runs scored (61) ... her impressive season also includes 39 more "free passes" (40 BB, 5 HBP) than strikeouts (6) while grounding into only one double-play.

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Kaile Cuico 230 AKAILEE CUICO
Oregon ... So. ... 1B ... #33
San Pedro, CA

Ducks cleanup batter who provided several key hits as Oregon took series from Arizona (rpi #9) for only the third time in program history (11-7, 12-7, 4-5) ... hit .444 (4-for-9) in the series, also reaching four times on walks while smacking a pair of home runs (1.222 slugging) ... sparked opening win with 1st-inning grand slam, her 8th home run of season and 2nd career slam ... added another 1st-inning blast, with a runner aboard, in series finale ... leads the team in RBI (43) and walks (24) while rankings second in home runs (8). 




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Julie Fernandez A

JULIE FERNANDEZ
Lehigh ... Sr. ... 1B ... #5
Moorpark, CA

Hit 6-for-9 in three key wins at Army, as Mountain Hawks won 4-game series (0-2, 6-0, 3-2, 5-4) in showdown that determined Patriot League regular-season title and hosting rights for 4-team league tournament (May 10-11; winner receives NCAA automatic bid) ... lefthanded-hitting #3 batter who delivered biggest hit of the Army series, a 2-out, opposite-field, 7th-inning solo home run that slammed off the leftfield scoreboard for go-ahead run in the title-clinching 3-2 game ... hit 8-for-16 overall with 9 RBI in 5-1 week, including DH sweep of Colgate (10-2, 8-0), with nine RBI and three doubles (giving her 21 for the season, tying the team and conference records) ... her pair of hits in series finale vs. Army pushed her career hit total to 257, tying yet another team/conference record ... had a pair of 4-RBI games during the week ... batting league-best .445 to rank among the top-10 nationally.

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Brittany Gardner A 230BRITTANY GARDNER
Loyola (Chicago) ... So. ... LHP ... #18
Orland Park, IL

Turned in 3-1 week with 31 strikeouts, 1.30 ERA and only 12 hits allows, spanning 27 innings that included midweek wins over a pair of Big Ten teams (1-0 vs. Northwestern; 3-1 at Purdue) and then a key series win at Horizon League leader Valparaiso, in 1-vs.-2 showdown (3-2, 4-1, 0-2) ... logged 2-hit shutout with 10 Ks in win over Wildcats, then posted road win over Boilermakers (6H-6K) ... allowed only 4 hits, while striking out 13, in pair of starts vs. Valpo team that was hitting at a .318 clip ... reprised her stat line from win over Northwestern (2H-10K) while picking up the opening 3-2 win over Crusaders ... has a 2.94 season ERA, with 31 more strikeouts (178) than innings pitched (147.2) and five double-digit strikeout games ...  has totaled 30 wins over the past two season (14 in 2011, 16 in '12). 


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7731146

JOLENE HENDERSON
California ... Jr. ... RHP ... #54
Elk Grove, CA

Factored into all three wins, as top-ranked California completed key series sweep at RPI #15 UCLA (3-0, 8-0, 10-3) ... compiled 1.31 ERA during the series, with 10 hits allowed, only 4 walks and 19 strikeouts in 16 total innings ... posted complete-game wins in series opener and finale (3H-3BB-9K in gm-1, then 5H-7K in gm-3) ... saved 6-inning middle game (2IP-2H-BB-3K), her 4th save of the season and 8th of her career ... boosted her season record to 26-1, with a league-best 1.12 ERA and .183 opp. batting avg. ... the sweep kept the Beats (16-2) atop the Pac-12 standings, narrowly ahead of Arizona State's 14-2.

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Taylor Hoagland A 230TAYLOR HOAGLAND
Texas ... Jr. ... RF ... #6
Flower Mound, TX

Homered three times in rivalry series vs. rpi #11 Texas A&M while batting 5-for-8 with 5 RBI, as Longhorns bounced back from opening loss (9-0, at A&M) to sweep pair of 1-run home games vs. Aggies (7-6, 4-3) ... had two of her team's seven hits in loss at A&M, than supplied several key blasts in pair of home games (from the leadoff spot) ... her first home run plated a pair of runs in the 5th and helped spark rally from 6-1 deficit, en route to series-tying win ... followed with her fourth multi-HR game of the season (3RBI, BB)  to help deliver win in series finale ... her 14 home runs this season are one shy of tying the Texas record that she set a year ago.

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Natalie Land A 230NATALIE LAND
Central Florida ... Sr. ... SS ... #11
Mayo, FL

Hit .692 (9-for-13) with 14 total bases from leadoff spot during 4-0 week that included sweep of rpi #40 Houston (4-1, 4-0, 6-3) ... had pair of hits in every game of Houston series (6-for-10, 3RBI, 3R, HR, 2B, SB), as UCF  swept Cougars for the second time in program history ... homered and scored twice in series opener, adding RBI double in gm-2 before scoring twice in finale ... played error-free up the middle ... also helped post 8-1 midweek win over Stetson (3-for-3, 2RBI-2R-2B-BB-SB).







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Alyson Onyon A 230

ALYSON ONYON
Cornell ... So. ... RHP ... #16
Saratoga Springs, NY

Dominated from the circle as Big Red rattled off must-win, 4-game sweep at Princeton (2-1 in 14 inn., 6-5, 2-1 in 10, 6-0) to force an Ivy League 1-game playoff vs. Penn (May 5, with Onyon likely to start – winner advances to Ivy League championship series the following weekend at Harvard, to determin automatic NCAA bid) ... went 3-0 with a 0.45 ERA in the series, spanning three complete games and 31 innings ... totaled 13 strikeouts while not allowing any extra-base hits (18H, 9 BB) ... logged nearly 400 pitches (399), including 211 while pitching all of the day-2 doubleheader ... went the distance in 14-inning opener (8 H, 6 BB/3 IBB, 6 K), setting Cornell record for innings pitched in a game (188 pitches) ... placed plenty of high-pressure in that first game, ultimately leaving 13 runners on base (including seven in scoring position, six of them in extra innings) ... took things to another level in the Sunday doubleheader (5H-BB-5K in gm-3, then 5H-2BB-2K in series finale), stranding 13 more runners to finish the weekend having allowed only two runs in the 31 innings.

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Jess Perkins A 230JESS PERKINS
Illinois ... Fr. ... 3B ... #4
Orland Park, IL

Rookie cleanup hitter and converted outfielder who played error-free at third base while hitting 5-for-11 vs. league's top pitching staff, as Illini kept alive their faint hopes for Big Ten title (regular-season champ receives NCAA bid) by winning series at rpi #28 Michigan (5-1 in 8 inn., 1-2, 2-0) ... her stats during tight series included 3 RBI, 3 R and an .818 slugging pct. (HR, 2B) ... delivered in the clutch with 3-run home run to deep left-center, as part of 5-run explosion in top of 8th during series opener ... rode the momentum of that blast by going 3-for-3 and scoring the game's only two runs in gm-2 win.

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7733672HOPE RUSH
Georgia Tech ... Jr. ... RHP/DP ... #45
Stockbridge, GA

Showcased her two-way talent by posting pair of complete-game wins while homering twice, as GT took series from rpi #32 Virginia Tech (5-0, 2-5, 5-0) ... totaled nine strikeouts in the shutouts, allowing a total of only eight hits while extending her season shutout total to 10 ... launched a 3-run blast in the series opener and then left the park on a grand slam in the finale (both while batting out of the #5 position) ... her season stats include a team-best 2.05 ERA and 22-12 record, with 134 Ks in 219 innings (she also is batting .306 with 10 home runs, 2nd-most on the team, and 39 RBI).

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