FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 3, 2018

Oklahoma’s Paige Parker shines in the circle to garner USA Softball Collegiate National Player of the Week honors

OKLAHOMA CITY — A 2-0 week in the circle over a Top 25 ranked opponent has landed Oklahoma’s Paige Parker (Independence, Mo.) USA Softball Collegiate National Player of the Week honors, USA Softball announced today. Parker, who also landed the Pitcher of the Week accolade for the Big 12 Conference, did not give up a single run, earned or unearned, over 11 innings pitched in a Big 12 Conference series against then-No. 15 Baylor.

"It is such a great honor to receive this award,” said Parker. “I could not do this without the support of my coaches and teammates who push me to become better every day.”

Parker registered her fourth complete game and third shutout of the season in a 5-0 win in the series opener against Baylor. In seven innings pitched, she surrendered just two hits while striking out one batter. She carried that momentum into the series finale, pitching four scoreless innings with just four hits and fanning four batters as the Sooners defeated Baylor 4-1.

"Paige has been a mainstay these last four years, which is difficult for a pitcher to do,” said Oklahoma Head Coach, Patty Gasso. “She is locked in for her senior season and we are proud of her accomplishments along with this well-deserved honor.”

For the week, Parker struck out five batters while holding opponents to a .162 batting average. She also extended her streak of consecutive scoreless innings to 38 and now leads the nation in ERA with a 0.30.

This marks the third USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Week honors for Parker as she earned weekly honors in the 2016 and 2015 seasons.

2018 USA Softball National Collegiate Players of the Week
Week 1 (Feb. 8-11): Vanessa Shippy – Oklahoma State – Senior – Infield – Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Week 2 (Feb. 12-18): Kylee Hanson – Florida State – RS Senior – Pitcher – Jupiter, Fla.
Co-Week 3 (Feb. 19-25): Kelly Barnhill – Florida – Junior – Pitcher – Marietta, Ga.
Co-Week 3 (Feb. 19-25): Rachel Garcia – UCLA – RS Sophomore – Pitcher – Palmdale, Calif.
Week 4 (Feb. 26-March 4): Jessica Hartwell – Texas Tech – Junior – Infield – Galt, Calif.
Week 5 (March 5-11): Alexis Osorio – Alabama – Senior – Pitcher – Riverside, Calif.
Week 6 (March 12-18): Madison Aurin – San Jose State – Junior – Pitcher/IF – Bakersfield, Calif.
Week 7 (March 19-25): Giselle “G” Juarez – Arizona State – Sophomore – Pitcher – Glendale, Ariz.
Week 8 (March 26-April 1): Paige Parker – Oklahoma – Senior – Pitcher – Independence, Mo.

About USA Softball
USA Softball is a 501(c)(3) not-for profit organization headquartered in Oklahoma City, Okla., and is designated as the National Governing Body (NGB) of Softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. One of the nation’s largest sports organizations, USA Softball sanctions competition in every state through a network of 69 local associations and has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 150,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than 2 million. USA Softball is dedicated to providing people of all ages the opportunity to play the game they love at a variety of levels by offering recreational, league, tournament and competitive play for fast pitch, slow pitch and modified pitch. USA Softball annually conducts thousands of tournaments throughout the country including over 100 National Championships. The USA Softball umpire program is among the nation’s largest and are widely known as the best trained umpires in the game.

As the NGB for the sport of softball, USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting the six USA Softball National Teams that compete in events such as the Olympics, Pan American Games, World Championships and other international and domestic events. For more information on USA Softball, including its founding and history as the Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA), please visit,www.USASoftball.com<http://www.usasoftball.com/>.

About the NCAA Women’s College World Series
USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium – OGE Energy Field serves as the home to the NCAA Women’s College World Series (WCWS). For the 28th year, the top eight college teams in the nation will head to Oklahoma City and compete for a national championship. Last year, over 70,000 fans attended the WCWS. Be there to Share The Experience with softball fans from across the country May 31-June 5/6 in Oklahoma City. Tickets for the 2018 NCAA WCWS are on sale now, click here<http://www.ncaa.com/tickets/softball/d1> to purchase your tickets and secure your championship experience!


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Codi Warren I Managing Director of Communications
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