Montana Fouts Wins SEC, National Pitcher of the Week Honors

Fouts threw 16 shutout innings in the series win at Missouri over the weekend.

Alabama Athletics

For the second time this season, Alabama pitcher Montana Fouts has been named the Wilson/NFCA D1 Pitcher of the Week and SEC Pitcher of the Week. 

It is the first time in program history that a Crimson Tide player has won the NFCA Pitcher of the Week honor twice in one season, and it's the 15th time overall that she has been awarded weekly honors from the Southeastern Conference. 

Fouts had two complete shutouts in the series win at Missouri over the weekend, which was comprised of 16 straight scoreless innings over back to back days. In the first two weekends of SEC play, Fouts was the Friday/Sunday starter in the circle. But in the series against the Tigers, she started on both Friday and Saturday to secure the Crimson Tide's first conference series win. 

"Really pleased with Montana and her [being] national pitcher of the week for the second time," Alabama coach Patrick Murphy said Tuesday. "To shut out somebody in windy, cold, a little bit of rain, was really really good. And obviously we went back to back because she had done well back to back in earlier tournaments, Texas specifically. She did what we thought she would do.”

Over the two games, Fouts allowed just seven hits and three walks while racking up 26 strikeouts. She now has eight double-digit strikeout performances this season and moved Fouts into fourth place on Alabama's all-time strikeout list. 

On the season, Fouts is 13-6 with a 1.64 ERA and 198 strikeouts. Alabama will host South Carolina for a three-game series this weekend beginning Thursday at 6 p.m.

See also:

Fouts' Heroics, Four-Run Ninth Inning Lift No. 13 Alabama Softball Over Missouri in Game 2

Larissa Preuitt Grand Slam Lifts Alabama Softball to Series-Opening Win over Missouri