Jessica Valis Named Conference USA Hitter of the Week

March 26, 2007

IRVING - Jessica Valis earned Conference USA Hitter of the Week honors Monday afternoon as announced by the league office. It's the first career weekly award for Valis.

Valis fueled the Houston (25-11, 8-1 C-USA) offense with a 6-for-11 weekend and a trio of multi-hit games as the Cougars took two of three games last weekend at Memphis to strengthen its hold on first place in the C-USA standings. Five of Houston's eight league wins have come on the road. The rest of C-USA has notched a combined seven road wins in conference play.

Along with her .545 batting average, Valis racked a .727 slugging percentage in addition to a .615 on-base percentage in the series. She also provided a multi-hit game and scored a run in each game of the series. The Shiner native also has hit safely in each of Houston's nine conference games and is currently on a six-game streak.

Valis set the tone for the series, notching an infield single in the first inning of game one. She moved to third base by using alert baserunning on a sacrifice bunt that caught the Memphis defense off guard and scored on an Elaina Nordstrom groundout. In the seventh inning, Valis ripped a triple to left field and scored another run on a Katie Bush RBI-single.

Valis also notched a pair of 2-for-4 performances with a run scored in games two and three. Houston is 44-12 when Valis scores a run and 26-11 when she turns in a multi-hit effort over the last two seasons.

With six hits on the weekend, Valis continued her climb up the Cougar career hits list. She's now in sole possession of seventh place after passing Leslie Seay (2001-02). The sophomore slapper has registered 118 career hits and is one back of Michelle Keith (2002-05) for the No. 6 position.

Houston returns to the diamond with a mid week doubleheader at Sam Houston State. First pitch is set for 4pm Wednesday against the Bearkats. Live stats will be available on UHCougars.com

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