PacWest Conference Weekly Awards (Mar. 13)

IRVINE, Calif. -- Freshman pitcher Hannah Rose Balke was essentially untouchable in ART U softball's two-game sweep of Notre Dame de Namur on Mar. 10 and was named Pacific West Conference Pitcher of the Week as a result. Just two hit batters away from throwing a perfect 10.0 innings against the Argos, she would toss the program's first no-hitter against an NCAA Division II team in her start, following up an impressive 5.0 innings of hitless and scoreless relief in game one. The award was based on games played March 6-12.

Entering in the sixth inning of what would become a 10-inning opener, Balke struck out the first two batters she faced and retired the first eight she faced. Despite hitting a batter thereafter, she would go on to pick up the win with no hits allowed. Less than an hour later, the Oak Park, Calif. native started game two and, other than a hit batter in the second inning, threw the five-inning no-hitter as her team scored eight runs in two innings.

Balke finished the day with no hits, runs, or walks allowed in 10.0 innings plus eight strikeouts and both wins. Through 14 appearances in her collegiate career thus far, she is second in the PacWest in strikeouts (42) and third in wins (8).

This is Balke's first career PacWest weekly honor and ART U's third after infielders Gracie Sotomayor (Feb. 20) and Freddie Carrillo (Mar. 6) each earned PacWest Freshman of the Week previously.