Coming off a strong opening weekend at the Eagle Round Robin which saw Middle Tennessee start 4-1 for the first time since 1999, the Tennessee Sports Writers Association has announced freshman infielder Lexi Cushing as Player of the Week. This is the first time since the 2015 season that MT has won the award.
“Lexi had a great weekend for us,” Head Coach Jeff Breeden said. “She’s a straight up power hitter and her balls jumped out of the yard very quickly off her bat head. Once she got rolling I thought she was going to hit one every time up.”
Cushing batted .429 (6-for-14) with three home runs and 10 RBI last weekend in Middle Tennessee’s four wins. This included crushing the first pitch she saw for a walk off two-run home run in extra innings to help the Blue Raiders defeat TN Tech, 5-3, on Saturday.
On the weekend, Cushing also went 2-for-4 with a RBI double to lift MT over Georgia Southern, 9-3, on Friday. Then on Sunday, went 2-for-3 with another two-run home run and an RBI single against TN Tech to help MT win, 8-2. She capped the weekend by hitting 1-for-2 with a sacrifice fly and another two-run blast allowing MT to defeat Georgia Southern 11-1, in six innings.
Cushing currently ranks in the top five among C-USA leaders in slugging percentage (1.143, first), runs scored (five, T-fifth), RBI (10, second), home runs (three, first), and total bases (16, first).
Breeden added, “As a freshman, Lexi is going to be an excellent player for us. Her days ahead and her future are unlimited for what she can do offensively for us. She also played good defense this weekend for us at first base. Lexi had a game winner and I don’t know how much better she could have done as a freshman Blue Raider.”
Middle Tennessee will play in another tournament this weekend, heading to Hammond, La. For the Lion Classic II hosted by Southeastern Louisiana State. The Raiders will face Southeast Missouri State, Morehead State, UT Arlington, Alcorn State, and the hosts between Friday, Feb. 17 and Sunday, Feb. 19.
