Freshman Ashley Lenser earns second straight OAC Softball Pitcher of the Week accolade

By Wes Mayberry

ADA — Ohio Northern freshman Ashley Lenser (Brookville) was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Softball Pitcher of the Week for the week of April 25 to May 1.

This marks the second straight week that Lenser has earned the honor.

The latest accolade comes after she played a pivotal role in what was a busy week for the Polar Bears as they went 5-1 en route to winning the OAC Regular Season championship and No. 1 seed for the conference tournament.

In three appearances, Lenser limited opposing batters to a .118 average while allowing just one run on six hits and one walk while striking out 12 over 15 innings in the circle.

She tallied her fifth shutout of the season in ONU's 9-0 win over John Carroll as she allowed just two hits and one walk while striking out seven over six innings.

She followed that up with a one-inning relief appearance in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader against Heidelberg as she pitched a 1-2-3 frame to preserve a 6-3 win and earn her first save of the season.

She came right back out to pitch all eight innings of Game 2 against HU during which she allowed just one run on four hits while striking out five and walking none as the Polar Bears clinched their 11th regular-season conference title in program history and first since 2014.

Now 10-2 on the season, Lenser has an OAC-best 1.49 ERA, ranks fourth in the conference in wins and ninth in strikeouts (65).

As the No. 1 seed, the Polar Bears are hosting the entirety of the OAC Tournament and will open their postseason schedule on Friday against No. 4 seed Otterbein at approximately 12 p.m.