Florida Tech Ace Pitcher Melanie Murphy Selected Division II National Pitcher of the Week
By Daniel Supraner, Florida Tech Sports // April 5, 2018
National Louisville Slugger/NFCA Pitcher of Week
BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – The National Fastpitch Coaches Association selected Florida Tech’s ace pitcher Melanie Murphy as the Division II National Louisville Slugger/NFCA Pitcher of the Week.
Murphy’s award marks the second time in the past four years that the softball program has had a student-athlete earn the accolade, but is first all-time for the local product.
Leading up to the award, Murphy was crowned Sunshine State Conference Pitcher of the Week earlier in the week due to her performance against the Rollins Tars this past weekend.
“I’m so proud of Murph,” said assistant pitching coach Amanda Haverman.
“She has done an excellent job of maintaining composure to shut down opposing offenses this season. I think her commitment to the game is impressive, and her determination to get better each pitch really shows.”
In the series against the Tars, Murphy made two starting appearances inside the circle for the Crimson and Gray, both of which left Rollins scoreless to record her 4th and 5th seasonal shutouts of the 2018 campaign.
In Friday’s outing, Murphy saved the Panthers from the Tars sixth-inning rally, which saw a one-out bases loaded situation that was threatening to the Panthers lead.
With one out and the possible tying and go-ahead runs on base, she hosted back-to-back strikeouts to dominate Rollins lineup, sending them back to the dugout scoreless to retire the half inning, 2-0 and give the Panthers their 22nd win.
During Game 2 of the doubleheader, she marked her 11th victory after showing a dominant performance over a seven-inning pitching stand that held Rollins scoreless for a team .174 batting average.
Due to her numbers in the afternoon outing, she moved into the seventh spot within the SSC for total strikeouts with 69.
Cumulatively, the lefty pitched 14 innings for a 0.00 ERA which held the Tars to just six hits and three walks, while striking out 11 against the 51 batters she faced. Additionally, the Melbourne native managed to restrain Rollins, a team who is averaging .265 at the plate, to just .130 over both outings.
For the past 19 consecutive days, starting on Mar. 17, 2018 during the doubleheader against Barry, Murphy has reigned atop the SSC leaderboard and continues to hold the number one spot for ERA with a 1.09. On the national level, however, the Panther currently ranks 11th inside NCAA DII for her ERA and sits 0.02 away from entering into the Top-10 for that category.
Additionally, the local standout is currently 11-7 with 128 innings pitched, has two saves and is responsible for 5-of-11 shutouts the Crimson and Gray have hosted this season, which ranks her second in the conference for total shutouts.
“I am beyond excited and proud of the accomplishments Melanie has received this week,” said head coach Val Silvestrini. “It’s a great honor to receive a national award and it is something that is well deserved.”
Florida Tech’s next outing will take place on Friday, Apr. 6 on the road against conference foe Nova Southeastern. In last year’s meeting between the two teams, the Panthers took 2-of-3 in a conference series held at Nancy Bottge Field. First pitch for this series is set for 6 p.m. ET.
CLICK HERE FOR BREVARD COUNTY NEWS
