Sam Landry collects Sun Belt Softball’s first Pitcher of the Week honor for 2023

First collegiate no-hitter and career-high strikeouts total highlighted her season debut

LAFAYETTE – Louisiana’s Sam Landry received the first Sun Belt Conference Softball Pitcher of the Week award of the 2023 season, the conference office announced on Tuesday (Feb. 14, 2023).

Landry tossed a no-hitter on Opening Day and completed the weekend with nine innings of one-hit, shutout softball while tallying 19 total strikeouts.

She struck out 13 of the 15 batters that she faced in crafting the no-hitter of Lafayette College in the season opener on Friday (Feb. 10), landing the first no-hitter of her collegiate career and a new career-high strikeouts total.

The sophomore righthander opened Sunday’s start vs. SFA with three strikeouts in the first inning and over the first two innings twice stranded runners in scoring position. After yielding a two-out double in the first inning, Landry closed the final 3-1/3 innings of her appearance with no-hit softball including retiring in order the final seven batters that she faced.

The Mont Belvieu, Texas native and Barbers Hill HS product picked up her third career SBC Pitcher of the Week honor. Landry received the award twice (March 29, April 12) during her rookie season last spring after dominating efforts in conference series with UT Arlington and Troy.

Louisiana, which has received at least one Sun Belt Player or Pitcher of the Week award since the inception of the league in 2000, now owns 95 all-time SBC Pitcher of the Week awards in program history.

Nationally ranked as high as No. 20 by Softball America, Louisiana (4-0) heads to the state of Florida for a key seven-game road trip that begins Thursday-Sunday, February 16-19 at the TaxAct Clearwater Invitational in Clearwater, Florida.

While in Clearwater the Ragin’ Cajuns are set to face an all-Power 5 slate that includes Indiana, plus nationally ranked Michigan, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, UCLA and Florida State. Play begins on Thursday, February 16 vs. Indiana at 12:00 p.m. (CST).

The Ragin’ Cajuns then travel to Orlando, Florida for a Mardi Gras day (Feb. 21) meeting with nationally ranked UCF before returning home.