OMAHA, Neb. – Fresh off her nine-inning complete-game shutout over Butler yesterday afternoon, Creighton softball’s Natalia Puchino earned her second BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week honor, the league announced on Monday afternoon.
Puchino guided the Bluejays to a 2-1 series win over Butler, posting a 2-1 overall record with a 1.42 ERA in 19.2 innings of work. The sophomore right hander struck out 18 batters over the weekend, while allowing just four runs on 10 total hits.
Despite suffering just her fifth loss of the season in the series opener to the Bulldogs on Friday, Puchino fired a complete game, limiting Butler to just one run on five hits while striking out three in the 1-0 setback. She then struck out five more Bulldogs in 4.2 innings of relief on Saturday as the Bluejays rallied to earn an 11-8 extra-innings win.
In the series finale, Puchino was purely dominant firing a nine-inning complete-game shutout while striking out a career high 10 batters in a 1-0 nine-inning win for the Bluejays. Puchino became the first Bluejay since Tara Oltman in 2007 to throw a nine-inning complete-game shutout, while earning her 20th win of the season.
Overall this season, Puchino has recorded a 20-5 overall record and a 1.90 ERA with a BIG EAST-best 135 strikeouts in 147 innings of work. Her 20 wins this season are tied for the tenth most in a single season in Creighton history and also ranks tied for sixth most in the NCAA this spring.
Puchino is the first Bluejay pitcher to earn BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week honors twice in the same season since Kiele Miller secured the honor three times during the 2019 season.
Puchino and the rest of the Creighton softball team will return to action on Tuesday night when they take on crosstown rival Omaha at 5 p.m. from the Creighton Sports Complex.
Natalia Puchino Earns Second BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week Honor
