April 27, 2004
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State pitcher Celena Velasquez (Tucson, Ariz.) has been named the Mountain West Conference pitcher of the week for her performance at New Mexico on Friday and at Colorado State on Sunday. The sophomore earned a win and a save without allowing a run to extend her scoreless innings streak to 20.2. She also earned the honor on Feb. 16 and April 13, to go along with April 1 and 15, 2003.
In game one of Friday's doubleheader versus New Mexico, she entered with two Lobos on base with one out in the second inning and SDSU trailing, 4-1, and proceeded to strike out the next two batters to get out of the jam and then scattered four hits over the next five innings, earning the win when the Aztecs completed an impressive comeback with five seventh-inning runs for a 7-4 victory. On Sunday in game one against Colorado State, Velasquez entered the sixth inning with a Ram on first and nobody out and SDSU holding a 2-1 lead and retired the next six batters for her fifth save.
The five saves, all in MWC contests, shatters the previous MWC season record for saves in conference games of three, set by former Aztec Bre DeSanta in 2002 and tied by current Ram Megan Masser last season. Velasquez is only two away from tying the MWC season record for saves in all games at seven, set by Masser in 2003. Velasquez is tied for 10th this season among NCAA Division I pitchers with her five saves, three behind Houston's Jenny Johnson's eight.
Velasquez has entered eight of the past 10 Aztec games in relief, including seven consecutive at one point, and has three wins, five saves and a 0.00 ERA in her 20.2 innings dating to April 9.
She once again is getting hot just as MWC play begins. Last season, she compiled a 2.26 ERA in non-conference games, but had a MWC-record low ERA of 0.81 ERA in conference contests to earn MWC pitcher and freshman of the year honors. So far in 2004, Velasquez has a 1.61 ERA in non-conference games and a stellar 0.25 ERA in MWC action.
With a 12-4 record (.750 winning percentage), Velasquez has the best record on the staff to go along with the team's only five saves.