Lake Forest College softball player Shaye Gauthier was named Forester Athlete of the Week on Thursday after belting a walk-off home run on Saturday to send her team to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
Gauthier stepped to the plate with a runner on first, two outs, and her team trailing by a run in the bottom of the seventh inning of the Midwest Conference Tournament Championship game. The sophomore second baseman connected on a long fly to left-center field that cleared the fence and gave the Foresters a 5-4 victory over St. Norbert College (Video).
Lake Forest also defeated Grinnell College 7-3 and St. Norbert 9-4 on Friday to reach the championship round. Gauthier had at least two base hits in each game and finished the tournament 8-for-12 with two doubles, a triple, and the dramatic home run. She now leads the team with a .375 batting average for the season.
In addition to her exploits during the games, Gauthier was announced on Friday as the recipient of the Midwest Conference Elite 20 Award, presented to the player at the four-team conference tournament with a highest cumulative grade point average. The league also released the 2019 All-MWC Softball Teams at the conclusion of the tournament and Gauthier was a Second Team honoree for the second year in a row.
Forester Athletes of the Week are selected by the Athletic Department on Thursdays.