FULLERTON, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton transfer Missy Taukeiaho paced the Titans to three wins over the week, blasted three home runs and collected four doubles en route to earning Big West Softball Field Player of the Week honors, it was announced by the conference on Monday.
Taukeiaho batted .643 (9-
for-14) with nine runs scored and 12 RBI to pioneer the offense. Batting from the right side, she collected three multi-hit games and four multi-run scoring games. Her performance translated into a (1.571) slugging percentage and (.750) on-base percentage while drawing six walks.
The Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., native hit safely in all five games, recording multiple hits against CSU Bakersfield and twice in competition with UC Santa Barbara.
In Cal State Fullerton's two Big West victories over UCSB, Taukeiaho batted a combined 5-for-5 with five runs scored, nine RBI and two round-trippers including a crucial grand slam in a come from behind win versus the Gauchos, 11-7, to capture the overall series.
The third baseman has now gone yard 12 times this season, currently tied for eighth nationally. Taukeiaho also leads the team in batting average (.400), hits (42), doubles (7), runs (36), RBI (32), walks (23), and stolen bases (6).
Dominating opposing pitchers, Taukeiaho has raked her way to a five-game hitting streak while reaching base a team-high 11 consecutive times.
This was the first time a Titan has earned Big West Player of the Week accolades since Jasmine Antunez and Taukeiaho swept pitcher/field player awards back on Feb. 10, respectively.
Following the series victory over UCSB, the Titans hit the road for a three-game series at Hawai'i. The Titans and Rainbow Wahine will meet in the opener on Friday (Apr. 4) at 6 p.m. and will wrap up the series with a doubleheader on Saturday (Apr. 5) starting at 4 & 6 p.m. All games will be contested at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium (RWSS) in Honolulu, Hawai'i.
Others nominated: Kim Westlund (Cal Poly); Shayna Kimbrough (Long Beach State); Kristen Clark (UC Santa Barbara); Leisha Li'ili'i (Hawai'i)