March 17, 2008

LOGAN, Utah - Utah State softball player Kelley Kaneshiro has been named the America First Credit Union Utah State Student-Athlete of the Week for the period ending on Sunday, March 16, it was announced on Monday. The award is voted on by a state media panel.

Freshman shortstop, Kelley Kaneshiro from Auburn, Wash. led Utah State at the Cascade Clash Invitational in Oregon, as she hit .625 (5-8) with a double and a home run, to go along with three RBI and three runs scored. In the Aggies' 11-3 run-rule loss in six innings at Oregon State, Kaneshiro hit a two-run home run and was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate. Against No. 20 Washington, she was 1-for-2 with a walk in the 9-3 loss in game one of the doubleheader and 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI in a 5-4 loss in game two against the Huskies. Overall Kaneshiro had a 1.125 slugging percentage and .667 on base percentage during the weekend. She also tallied five assists defensively and had a perfect fielding percentage.

The Aggies continue action on Tues., March 18 facing South Dakota at 2 p.m. and battling BYU at 4 p.m. in Provo, Utah.

Nominees from other sports included:
MEN'S BASKETBALL - Senior All-American guard Jaycee Carroll (Evanston, Wyo.) was named to the WAC's All-Tournament team as he led Utah State to an 85-65 win against San Jose State in the quarterfinals, followed by an 88-78 loss to Boise State in the semifinals. During the tournament, Carroll averaged 22.0 points and 4.0 rebounds and shot 54.8 percent from the field (17-31) and 55.6 percent from three-point range (10-18) as he had 24 points against the Spartans and 20 against the Broncos.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL - Senior forward Jamelah Brown (Phoenix, Ariz.) led the seventh-seeded Utah State women's basketball team with 10 points and five rebounds in its 61-47 loss to second-seeded Boise State in the quarterfinals of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament. Brown shot 28.6 percent from the field (4-14), 20.0 percent from behind the arc (1-5) and was 1-for-1 from the free throw line in the game.

GYMNASTICS - Freshman Jasmine Minion (Memphis, Tenn.) notched a career-best 9.900 on floor at Texas Woman's quad meet in tying for first and helping Utah State to a third-place finish with a team score of 193.900. That score on floor was USU's first 9.900 on any event this season and is the second-best mark in the WAC this year and the fourth-highest in school history. She also tied for second on the vault at Texas Woman's with a score of 9.850. In Monday's dual at BYU, in which USU was second with a 194.250, Minion posted a 9.800 to tie for third on floor, giving her a 9.850 average for the week. She also scored a career-best 9.875 on vault at BYU.

2007-08 Utah State Athlete of the Week Winners
Sept. 4 - Dana Peart, Soccer
Sept. 10 - Amanda Nielson, Volleyball
Sept. 17 - Dana Peart, Soccer
Sept. 24 - Kevin Robinson, Football
Oct. 1 - Melissa Osterloh, Volleyball
Oct. 8 - Kevin Robinson, Football
Oct. 15 - Seth Wold, Cross Country
Oct. 22 - Amanda Nielson, Volleyball
Oct. 29 - Seth Wold, Cross Country
Nov. 5 - Lauren Hansen, Soccer
Nov. 12 - Danielle Taylor, Volleyball
Nov. 19 - Rob Myers, Football
Nov. 26 - Stephen DuCharme, Men's Basketball
Dec. 3 - Jaycee Carroll, Men's Basketball
Dec. 10 - Danyelle Snelgro, Women's Basketball
Dec. 17 - Tai Wesley, Men's Basketball
Dec. 24 - Jaycee Carroll, Men's Basketball
Dec. 31 - Gary Wilkinson, Men's Basketball
Jan. 7 - Tai Wesley, Men's Basketball
Jan. 14 - Gary Wilkinson, Men's Basketball
Jan. 21 - Jaycee Carroll, Men's Basketball
Jan. 28 - Erin Stratton, Women's Track
Feb. 4 - Maria Halton, Women's Track
Feb. 11 - Nick Karren, Men's Track
Feb. 18 - Jakob Asplund, Men's Tennis
Feb. 25 - Jenny Gross, Women's Basketball
Mar. 3 - John Strang, Men's Track
Mar. 10 - Jaycee Carroll, Men's Basketball
Mar. 17 - Kelley Kaneshiro, Softball