Cassandra Valdez Selected As NAIA Softball Pitcher of the Week

KANSAS CITY, MO. (April 9, 2024) – Cassandra Valdez of Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) has been named the NAIA Softball Pitcher of the Week. Valdez was selected based on her performances from April 1-7 and was chosen out of a pool of conference/Continental Athletic Conference (Independents)/unaffiliated group nominees.  

NAIA Softball Pitcher of the Week

Cassandra Valdez, Our Lady of the Lake - GR - RPH

• In Valdez's three outings last week, two as a starter and one in relief, she combined for 16 complete innings tossed.
• Picked up a save in the 3-1 victory on the road while allowing only seven hits and a pair of walks on the week.
• Struck out 29 batters with an average of 12.69 strikeouts per seven innings as she held onto a 0.56 WHIP.

Valdez leads the NAIA in ERA at 0.43 in 38 games played. She is 17-0 for third overall in wins in the NAIA. and she has three saves. She has accumulated 184 strikeouts for an overall 11.40 per game. Valdez is also first in shutouts for the year with nine and first in WHIP (Walks and Hits Per Inning Pitched) at .55 

Valdez is only the second member of the OLLU softball team to be selected as National Player of the Week. Last year, Madison Nunn received the recognition. A total of eight student-athletes have received this prestigious honor. Other than the two mentioned above, other recipients include:

• Robert Martinez, Men's Basketball, 2009-2010
• Dionelle Rucker, Men's Basketball, 2009-2010
• Josh Orta, Men's Basketball, 2011-2012
• Zhao Yang Gu, Men's Golf, 2018-2019
• Dezeree White, Women's Basketball, 2019-2020
• Nathaniel Rodriguez, Men's Cross-Country, 2022-2023

Players of the Week are announced weekly throughout the regular season on Tuesdays on naia.org, Instagram, and Twitter.

Twitter - @NAIA

Instagram - @PlayNAIA

For a full archive of the 2024 NAIA Softball Players of the Week, click HERE