COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- San Diego State softball's Maggie Balint (West Grove, Pa.) has been named the Mountain West Pitcher of the Week, the league announced Tuesday. It is the second straight weekly MW accolade for Balint and fourth of her career.
Balint helped SDSU to a 5-1 record last week, including a 4-1 mark in the five-team Campbell/Cartier Classic en route to San Diego State's third consecutive CCC title and record sixth overall. Balint pitched in three games, going 3-0 with a 1.56 ERA and a shutout, striking out 33 with just three walks allowed in 18 innings. The right-hander limited the opposition to a .133 average with only eight hits allowed, including six singles.
Balint began her week with 11 strikeouts in a 3-1 Aztec win over San Diego on Wednesday, allowing one run on three hits and two walks over seven innings. She picked up the victory against Army West Point on Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits and a walk over four innings, while striking out eight of the 17 batters she faced. Balint finished her week in style on Sunday, tossing a one-hit shutout with a career-high 14 strikeouts in a 3-0 SDSU win over California Baptist. In the CBU game, she struck out the side in the second and seventh innings, and had at least one in all seven frames. Out of the 14 strikeouts, 10 were swinging and four were looking. Balint allowed one hit - an infield single in the third - and no walks over the complete game shutout.
Balint is off to an impressive start to 2022, owning a 4-1 record with a 1.35 ERA, striking out 57 against just four walks in 31 innings, limiting the opposition to a .150 average. Among the national leaders this year, Balint ranks fourth in strikeouts (57) and strikeouts per seven innings (12.9), tied for 11th in victories (4) and 32nd in strikeout-to-walk ratio (14.25).
San Diego State travels to the Palm Springs area for the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, beginning with a Thursday doubleheader against Cal State Fullerton (5:30 p.m. PT) and UC Davis (8 p.m. PT) at Big League Dreams in Cathedral City, California. The Aztecs will also face No. 18/15 Northwestern (3 p.m. PT) and No. 5/5 Washington (6 p.m. PT) on Friday, and No. 16/19 Missouri at 9:30 a.m. PT Saturday.