NEW ORLEANS | After posting a perfect 4-0 record this past week, including a series sweep of App State over the weekend, South Alabama swept the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week honors as Olivia Lackie was named the league's pitcher of the week for the fifth time this spring and Bailey Welch was selected the player of the week on Tuesday.

The dual weekly conference award selections marked the first time since both Jenna Hardy and Gabby Stagner were named the players of the week for the conference after South's three-game road sweep at UT Arlington to open league play during the 2022 season.

The honor marks the 10th time in Lackie's career and the 35th time in which the program has had a pitcher earn the award. The 10 selections for Lackie bring her within one of matching Devin Brown's program mark (11). Lackie's selection also marks the sixth time this spring that a Jaguar pitcher has earned the honor as she has been selected five times and Hardy (3/21).

The five selections this season for Lackie equal Brown's single-season mark set during the 2016 campaign. 

The offensive player of the week accolade for Welch is the first of her career and the 22nd time a player has earned the honor in program history.

Lackie continued to be dominant in the circle this past week as she tossed 15 scoreless innings in the circle and went 3-0. The junior earned her first win in a relief appearance on Tuesday night against Nicholls, and recorded a pair of complete-game shutouts versus App State. She struck out 18 batters and held opponents to a .164 batting average in her three outings.

Lackie tied former Jag great Faris Beard for fourth all-time in career strikeouts versus the Colonels and then moved into fourth alone as she struck out Kayt Houston to begin the series opener versus the Mountaineers. In Sunday's series final, Lackie made a first-inning run hold for the Jaguars as she tossed her NCAA-best 10th shutout of the season. The Sunday shutout was the 29th of Lackie's career, just two back of Brown who holds the all-time mark with 31.

Lackie is 16-6 on the year with a 1.50 earned run average, and she has been credited with the win in eight of her last 11 starts. Since her Feb. 17 start vs. Mississippi Valley State, she has allowed one or fewer runs in 14 of her last 20 starts. 

Welch had one of the best weeks of her career as she helped the Jaguars record a perfect record. In her four games, Welch batted .625 with an .875 slugging percentage and reached base safely in seven of her 10 plate appearances. The Hueytown, Ala., native also had a pair of doubles, scored a run and drove in three, while also playing some outstanding defense in the outfield.

The highlight of the week came in Friday's doubleheader versus the Mountaineers as she was 5-for-5 at the plate with a pair of doubles and a career-high three RBI in game two.

South Alabama (29-13, 11-4 SBC) will head out back out on the road for the first of two-straight road series when the Jags travel to Statesboro, Ga., to take on Georgia Southern in a three-game SBC series. First pitch for game one is set for Friday at 5 p.m. (CT) at Eagle Field at the GS Softball Complex. 

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