Chidester, Taylor Claim Final Big Ten Weekly Honors
5/16/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 16, 2011
PARK RIDGE, Ill. -- Junior third baseman Amanda Chidester (Allen Park, Mich./Cabrini HS) and senior RHP Jordan Taylor (Valencia, Calif./Valencia HS) of the University of Michigan softball team nabbed the Big Ten Conference's final Player of the Week and Pitcher of the Week accolades of the 2011 season, respectively, the conference office announced Monday (May 16). The Wolverines swept in-state rival Michigan State over the weekend, 8-0 (6 inn.), 8-0 (5 inn.), to capture their fourth consecutive Big Ten title.
Chidester claims her second consecutive Player of the Week accolade -- and third of the season -- after batting .800 with four runs batted in and two runs scored in Michigan's two-game sweep of the Spartans last weekend. In the opener, she drove in two runs and scored once to help the Wolverines clinch a share of the Big Ten title. In the series finale on Saturday (May 14), she was a perfect 3-for-3 from the plate, driving in two runs as the Wolverines clinched the Big Ten's automatic berth to the NCAA Championship.
Taylor threw a no-hitter in the series finale against Michigan State to cap a dominant weekend from the circle. She allowed just one hit in 11 innings of work over two games in the series, striking out 19, including a season-best 13 in the opener on Friday (May 13). She walked just two batters last week to clinch her sixth weekly pitching honor this season and unprecedented 14th of her career. The no-hitter was the eighth of Taylor's career, and she finished the regular season with a 29-3 record.
The Wolverines will host an NCAA Regional for the 10th consecutive year, welcoming Notre Dame, Kentucky and Western Michigan this weekend (Fri-Sun., May 20-22) to the Wilpon Complex. Michigan opens play against Western Michigan at 8 p.m. on Friday evening.
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
