RICHARDSON, Texas (February 18, 2026) – Lubbock Christian University sophomore Natalee Gray was named the Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week on Tuesday after authoring one of the most remarkable weeks in program history, highlighted by a perfect game and another dominant outing to open conference play.
 
Gray, a right-hander from Burkburnett, Texas, earned the first Pitcher of the Week honor of her career after going 1–0 with a 0.54 ERA across two starts. She logged 13.0 innings, allowed just one hit and one earned run, struck out 11, and issued no walks, while holding opponents to a .025 batting average.
 
The sophomore opened the week by tossing the second perfect game in LCU softball history in a 4–0 road win at Vanguard (Costa Mesa, Calif.), retiring all 21 batters she faced on just 73 pitches while recording her second career no-hitter.
 
Five days later in Wichita Falls, Texas, Gray carried a perfect game into the seventh inning against Midwestern State in LCU's Lone Star Conference opener. She ultimately allowed just one hit and one run while striking out eight over six innings in a 13-inning marathon that matched the longest game in program history.
 
Across the two outings, Gray faced 39 consecutive batters without surrendering a hit. The honor marks LCU's first Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week recipient since Feb. 26, 2024 (Maxine Valdez). Gray was previously recognized as a Lone Star Conference Freshman of the Week on Feb. 11, 2025.
 
LCU enters the week at 6–6 overall (2-0 in conference) after an 0–5 start to the season, having won six of its last seven games, including a 4–0 week that featured road doubleheader sweeps at Vanguard and Midwestern State.
 
The Lady Chaps return to action Friday for their home opener, hosting University of Texas Permian Basin in a LSC doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. at Maner Park.