ST. LOUIS – After a standout weekend at the UTSA Softball Classic, freshman Daphne Plummer earned the first weekly award of her career and was named the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week, announced by the league office Monday.
 
The shortstop led the squad with a .500 batting average at the UTSA Softball Classic, where she racked up nine hits, two doubles, one triple and five RBIs. She led the team with two hits in MSU's 4-3 victory over Prairie View and was the lone Bear to reach home in the team's 1-0 win against Lamar. She collected a pair of hits against tournament host UTSA and drove in a season-high four RBIs against Kansas on Sunday.
 
Against Kansas, Plummer drove in two runs on a two-out, RBI single into right-center in the top of the second inning and then tacked on two more in the top of the fourth. The newcomer unleashed her first triple of the season past KU's diving right fielder before the Jayhawks struck back. Plummer is currently third in the league with 14 hits and is tied for third with a .500 batting average.
 
The Bears will travel down to Ruston, La., on Feb. 23-25 for the Louisiana Tech University Invitational. For all the latest information on the Missouri State softball team, visit missouristatebears.com or follow @MSUSoftball on Twitter.