Pitcher receives double honors

Softball pitcher/first baseman Megan Langenfeld was named the USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Week Wednesday, as well as the Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week.

The honors came in light of her recent victories against Pac-10 champion Arizona, breaking the Wildcats’ 17-game home winning streak, and Pac-10 runner-up Arizona State on back-to-back nights last weekend. She is the only pitcher in the Pac-10 to accomplish this feat all season.

At Arizona last Thursday, she allowed only two earned runs in seven innings, as well as hitting a three-run home run in the fifth to break a 4-4 tie that brought a 7-4 victory home for the Bruins. Against Arizona State, she repeated the phenomenal performance, allowing two earned runs and stacking up six strikeouts in a 4-3 win, as well as hitting 2 for 3 with an RBI double.

Her statistics for the week add up to a 1.75 ERA, 10 strikeouts, 0.333 BA, five RBI’s, and a 0.778 slugging percentage.

GYMNASTICS RECRUIT SIGNED: World-renowned gymnast Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs announced her commitment to UCLA for the fall of 2008. She has signed her letter of intent, but will defer enrollment for one year in order to train for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

Hopfner-Hibbs, a resident of Toronto, Ontario, is known internationally for being the first female Canadian gymnast to win a world medal. She accomplished the feat at the 2006 World Championships, where she received a bronze medal on the balance beam.

At the 2006 Commonwealth Games, her score tied for first place, but she received the silver medal because of a tiebreaker rule. Additionally, she has won the Canadian All-Around national title three times, including a 2006 victory in the floor exercise and a 2005 victory on the balance beam.

WOMEN’S SOCCER COMMIT HONORED: Women’s soccer commit, Lauren Barnes, was recently honored as the Gatorade California Girls’ Soccer Player of the Year. Currently a senior at Upland High, Barnes’ past honors also include a 2007 Los Angeles Times First Team selection, a place on the U.S. Soccer Federation Under-20 National Team, and 2006 CIF Southern Section Co-Player of the Year honors. The most recent honor gives Barnes an automatic nomination for the Gatorade National Player of the Year, an honor that freshman soccer player Lauren Cheney received in 2006.

Compiled by Allister Wenzel, Bruin Sports senior staff

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