A record-setting performance earlier in the season helped Joni Russell earn G-MAC Softball Pitcher of the Week honors, so it's only fitting that as another record falls for the junior pitcher from Hillsdale College, the conference office is ready to recognize it.
Russell won her second weekly conference honor of the season, and the eighth of her career, the conference office announced on Monday, after going 3-0 in four starts and helping lead the Chargers to a 5-1 week in G-MAC play over the past seven days.
On Sunday, Russell pitched one of the best games of a career that's already seen her earn All-American honors, striking out 15 of the 22 batters she faced and allowing just two baserunners in a 6-0 shutout of 26-10 Ohio Dominican that helped Hillsdale seize sole control of second place in the G-MAC standings with two weeks left in the regular season. In the process, Russell blew past the G-MAC record for career strikeouts by a pitcher of 616, set by Trevecca Nazarene's Haley Fagan in 2016. After the win over Ohio Dominican, Russell now sits at 627 for her career, with the remainder of the 2024 season and a full year of eligibilty past that.
It's the second career strikeout mark set by Russell this season, as she surpassed Hillsdale's career strikeouts record of 474 set by Sarah DeAngelo in 2001 in early March. She's set a torrid pace nationally after finishing in the top five in NCAA DII in strikeouts in 2023, as her 199 strikeouts this season tie for fifth in the nation to date, and her 11.3 strikeouts per inning rank fifth as well. Russell also was the winning pitcher with 12 strikeouts in Hillsdale's 6-2 win over Tiffin on Wednesday and had 16 total strikeouts across two games in a doubleheader split with Ashland on Saturday. The defending G-MAC Pitcher of the Year and a consensus All-American in 2023, Russell is currently 15-5 overall with a 1.53 ERA as Hillsdale remains in contention for the G-MAC title down the stretch of the season.
Hillsdale hosts Lake Erie and Ursuline this coming Saturday and Sunday for the Chargers' final home doubleheaders of the 2024 season.
Photo by Meredith Wipper