Tusculum College senior righthander Elizabeth Johnson was recognized as the South Atlantic Conference Pitcher of the Week in softball for the week ending March 31, the conference office announced Tuesday afternoon.

Johnson earned a pair of road conference wins last week to help the Pioneers maintain their spot atop the SAC standings. The Greenville, Wisc. native allowed an unearned run in a 3-1 win at Carson-Newman last Wednesday, then pitched a three-hitter in a 2-1 victory at Catawba on Friday afternoon.

Against Carson-Newman, Johnson took a shutout into the seventh inning after the Eagles scored 13 runs in the opening game of the doubleheader. Johnson faced a bases-loaded situation with two outs, but was able to retire the side on a ground ball to preserve the victory. She allowed eight hits and struck out one in the game.

In the win over Catawba, Johnson needed just 73 pitches to shut down the Indians in the opening game of the doubleheader. She struck out three and allowed just a sixth-inning run after the Pioneers had taken a 2-0 lead. Johnson came back in the nightcap and pitched 2 2/3 innings of relief in a loss to the Indians.

Including Monday's action, Johnson is 10-8 with a 3.44 earned run average for the Pioneers this season, with 69 strikeouts in 124 innings and 11 complete games in 21 starts.

The Pioneers return home on Saturday to host Wingate in a SAC doubleheader, starting at 1 p.m. at Red Edmonds Field.