April 28, 2014
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Junior infielder Corrin Genovese (East Amherst, N.Y.) and freshman pitcher Tori Finucane (Germantown, Md.) were named Southeastern Conference Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, the league office announced Monday. With the two recognitions, head coach Ehren Earleywine's squad became the first SEC program to claim both honors in the same week this season.
Genovese batted .462 (6-for-13) to lead No. 15 Mizzou to a 3-1 week and series win at No. 3 Florida (April 25-27). Her series at UF included the first grand slam of her career to help the Tigers clinch the series on Sunday, April 27, winning 5-4. The series win at Florida was Mizzou's fifth-straight in SEC action.
Genovese continued her strong league performance, hitting 4-for-10 (.400) against the Gators, with her SEC batting average of .466 ranking second-best in the conference. Her weekly league honor marks the first of her Mizzou career.
Finucane posted a 3-0 record in three complete game performances to improve to 19-5 overall, including two SEC victories at No. 3 Florida. She limited Mizzou's opponents to just a .181 batting average at the plate in her 21.0 innings of work during the week.
Finucane controlled the Gators in the series-opening 5-3 win on Friday, April 25, improving to 7-0 in Friday league starts with a complete game (7.0 IP), four-hit, six-strikeout outing. She then struck out 10 in the series finale on Sunday, April 27, a 5-4 victory for Mizzou, to earn her 10th victory in conference play.
The honor for Finucane is her second SEC Pitcher of the Week award of her freshman season, becoming the second league pitcher to earn the honor multiple times in 2014.
The last time a Mizzou duo claimed conference player and pitcher of the week recognition in the same week came on Feb. 18, 2013, when former slugger Nicole Hudson and ace pitcher Chelsea Thomas combined for the honors. Genovese's recognition marks the first SEC Player of the Week for Mizzou since the aforementioned Hudson honor.
Mizzou returns to action at University Field with a doubleheader vs. Creighton on Tuesday, April 29, with start times of 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. The initial game will have live radio coverage on KTGR (100.5 FM, 103.1 FM and 1580 AM).
The Tigers then host Alabama to close the regular season, playing a three-game set from Thursday, May 1-Saturday, May 3. Mizzou and Alabama will play two nationally televised games on Thursday (7 p.m., ESPN) and Saturday (1 p.m., ESPNU), with the series finale on Saturday also featuring Senior Day festivities.