Kira Baker Collects National and Conference Pitcher of the Week Awards

BALDWIN CITY, Kan. – For the third time this season, Baker University pitcher Kira Baker earned both NAIA and Heart of America Conference Pitcher of the Week honors after throwing her second perfect game of 2023.

Baker went 2-1 in the circle and pitched 19.1 innings last week, highlighted by a perfect game in Sunday's 1-0 victory over Mount Mercy. She racked up 41 strikeouts over the course of her three outings and posted shutout performances against Culver-Stockton and the Mustangs.

The Eudora, Kan. native began the week with nine strikeouts in BU's 9-0 run-rule win over CSC and battled an extra-innings thriller against Grand View where she notched a season-high 17 strikeouts against the Vikings before capping her incredible week with another perfect game.

Against the Mustangs on Monday, Baker fanned 15 hitters and only had one playable ball leave the infield as the Mount Mercy lineup looked to drop a few bunts to counter the Wildcats' electric lefty.

In 2023, Baker has amassed nearly 200 strikeouts (193) in less than 100 innings (92.2) to lead a Wildcats team that won five of their first six games of league play. With a 14-1 record, Baker has thrown 11 complete games and nine shutouts with no-hitters in five of those games, including her first perfect game against St. Mary of the Woods back on Feb. 19.

BU softball continues its conference homestand on Friday, April 7 with a top-25 showdown against No. 21 Central Methodist with first pitch of the doubleheader scheduled for 1 p.m. at Cavaness Field in Baldwin City.

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