Posted By Press Democrat Staff Writer Michael Coit:

Making a sterling college debut, former All-Empire softball great Taylor Stroud earned conference pitcher of the week honors for Sacramento State.
The pitcher from Montgomery High School was named the Pacific Coast Softball Conference Coastal Division Pitcher of the Week after throwing 6.2 strong innings in an 11-inning loss to Fresno State on Saturday. Stroud gave up only four hits and an unearned run, walked one and struck out four.
Showing a veteran’s poise, Stroud came on with no outs and a runner at second base in the fifth inning and also worked out of jams in the seventh and ninth innings. A Hornets throwing error allowed the winning run to score in a hard luck loss for Stroud.
One of Sacramento State’s top pitchers, Stroud is expected to pitch mostly in relief this season.
“Taylor shows such a different array of pitches, and we will likely use her in relief this season,” said Sacramento State coach Kathy Strahan. “She is extremely focused on the field and plays the game so hard you can’t help but root for her. She is good right out of the shoot and doesn’t need to face two or three batters to get acclimated into the game.”
Stroud begins her first year with the Hornets after a decorated prep career at Montgomery.
During her final two seasons, Stroud went 35-4 with a 0.35 ERA, 33 complete games, 16 shutouts, 338 strikeouts, 37 walks and a .140 opponents’ batting average. She was second team all-state, second team all-West Region, and first team All-Empire as a senior after being named All-Empire Player of the Year as a junior.

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