Mariesha Marker Named Northeast Conference Softball Rookie of the Week

5/7/07 -- Freshman Mariesha Marker (Keizer, Ore.) was named the Northeast Conference Softball Rookie of the Week for the week ending May 6, as announced by the league on Monday.

Marker went a remarkable 7-for-9 in a doubleheader sweep of Robert Morris last Monday and stole her team-leading ninth base in helping Long Island to secure its seventh NEC regular-season title.

In the first game of the twinbill, Marker went a perfect 5-for-5 with two runs scored as the Blackbirds pounded out a season-best 25 hits en route to a 19-7 win. The five hits were the most by a player in the Northeast Conference this season. The Oregon native also saw her batting average rise 45 points to .290, which is fourth-best on the team.

Long Island will continue its season on Friday, May 11 as it hosts the Northeast Conference tournament on the campus of Fairleigh Dickinson in Teaneck, N.J. The top-ranked Blackbirds face fourth-seeded Quinnipiac in the first game of the double-elimination tournament at 10:00 a.m.