Feb. 16, 2010
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Redshirt senior second baseman Jen Yee and freshman pitcher/designated player Hope Rush have been named the Atlantic Coast Conference Softball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively. Yee and Rush helped No. 13/14 Tech go 4-0 at the USF Wilson-DeMarini Tournament in Clearwater, Fla., over the weekend. One of those wins was against No. 3/5 Florida marking the highest ranked program the Jackets have ever beaten. In that game, Tech handed Florida All-American pitcher Stephanie Brombacher her first career loss in 43 decisions.
Rush began her career with back-to-back shutouts, one of which came against No. 3 Florida. She scattered seven hits over the course of 14 shutout innings while walking five and striking out 13. In her first collegiate start Rush blanked the third-ranked Gators, the 2009 national runner-up. She stranded seven base runners over the first three innings and got stronger as the game went on posting four of her seven strikeouts in the final two frames. In her next start against East Carolina, Rush was one out away from a no-hitter but settled for a two-hit shutout of the Pirates. In that game, she retired 18 straight batters at one point, had only five two-ball counts and needed just 76 pitches for the win.
At the plate, Rush batted .333 on the weekend with two home runs and five RBI. She hit a two-run home run off Brombacher and also went deep against Canisius in her first career at bat.
Yee picked right up where she left off following her 2009 All-American campaign. She reached base safely in 11 of her 13 plate appearances and batted .778 (7-for-9) with eight runs scored, two doubles, a triple, two home runs and five RBI. Yee drew four walks and recorded a 1.889 slugging percentage and an .846 on-base percentage for the weekend. She tied a career-high with four runs scored against Florida Gulf Coast.
The Yellow Jackets will now head out west for the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic, Feb. 19-21, in Las Vegas, Nev. While in Vegas, Georgia Tech will face Northwestern, BYU, Hawaii, Long Beach State and California. Live stats and audio will be available for every game in Las Vegas at www.RamblinWreck.com.
