Iowa Lakes Community College softball player MacKenna Jones has been named the National Junior College Athletic Association's Pitcher of the Week. In addition to this award, Jones was also named Iowa Community College Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week. These awards were due to play between February 27th and March 5th when the Lakers started the season with a 6-0 record.
Jones, a sophomore from Albia, Iowa, was nearly perfect on the mound. She recorded three wins and one save on the weekend. In her 18.1 innings pitched, Jones allowed zero runs and just five hits. She struck out forty-two batters, for an average of 2.33 strikeouts per inning. Her monster game came against Cloud County when she allowed just one hit and struck out sixteen batters. Jones took a perfect game into the seventh inning, before allowing one hit. In addition, Jones is batting .524 from the plate with two doubles and three homeruns.
Jones had this to say about receiving this award, "I am honored to be receiving this award. The hard work and dedication put in during this off-season have paid off, and I am thankful that awards like these are given out to show that. The entire team had a phenomenal weekend and I am excited to see what we can do through the rest of the season."
This weekend saw the Lakers start with a perfect 6-0 record. They recorded four wins over Southeast Community College and two wins over Cloud County Community College. The Lakers outscored their opponents 67-17 in the six contests. As a team, they posted a .454 batting average (highest in the ICCAC) with a .471 on-base percentage (second in the ICCAC. They compiled eighty-eight hits, including twenty-one doubles, one triple, and sixteen homeruns. Additionally, they swiped fifteen bases and have a .979 fielding percentage. On top of Jones' awards, Bryn Bohmann was named Iowa Community College Athletic Conference Player of the Week.
Coach King had this to say, "What a great accomplishment for MacKenna. She has put in the hard work and dedication the last two years to see the results that she got this weekend. Everything that she accomplished could not have been done without her teammates. They have all worked this off-season pushing each other, holding each other accountable, and supported one another. This is what makes for a successful program and the opportunity for each of them to succeed. I am very proud of MacKenna and cannot wait to see what more she can accomplish this year."