March 23, 2009

URBANA, Ill. - Illinois sophomore second baseman Danielle Zymkowitz was unstoppable last week, batting .900 while slugging 1.500 through three games to earn Big Ten Co-Player of the Week honors. It marks the second weekly award this season for Zymkowitz, who shares the honor with Northwestern's Kelly Dyer.

Zymkowitz was a perfect 8-for-8 with five RBIs and five runs in Illinois' sweep of Penn State. In the conference opener, the West Hills, Calif., native belted her second career home run en route to a 4-for-4 performance. In addition to a pair of runs and RBIs on the day, Zymkowitz also stole three bases to move to 13-for-13 on the season. She capped off her stellar week with another 4-for-4 performance on Sunday, knocking two doubles, driving in three and crossing the plate three times. Prior to the Penn State series, Zymkowitz went 1-for-2 with two runs in Illinois' 11-3 win over Illinois State.

Not only is Zymkowitz leading the team with her .500 average, but also she is tied atop the Big Ten with Northwestern's Tammy Williams. The sophomore ranks first in the conference in on-base percentage (.562) and runs (28), is tied for first with 39 hits and is second with 13 stolen bases.

Zymkowitz and the Illini continue the home stretch on Tuesday, hosting the Loyola Chicago Ramblers at 4 p.m. On Thursday, the Orange and Blue welcome the No. 24/21 DePaul Blue Demons at 6 p.m. before returning to conference action with a weekend series against Michigan State.