MADISON, Wis. (Blugolds.com) - UW-Eau Claire softball pitcher Sarah Peka (Jr. – Chanhassen, MN/Minnetonka) and catcher Gretchen Arneson (Jr. – Chippewa Falls, WI/Chi-Hi) and women's gymnast Hannah Lewis (Saline, Mich.) have each been named Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Athlete of the Week, WIAC Assistant Commissioner for Media Relations Matt Stanek announced today.

Lewis is coming off back-to-back uneven bars title wins. On March 1, she had the best routine of her career thus far, and stuck her bar dismount. She won the event with a 9.675 against UW-Stout, reaching the second-highest score in school history and a season best for her. Lewis holds the top-five individual scores in school history on the uneven bars. The women's gymnastics team will compete at the WIAC Championships hosted by UW-Stout on March 9. 

Arneson led UW-Eau Claire to a 4-0 start to the season with victories over University of Dubuque (Iowa) (7-6), Rockford University (Ill.) (8-0), Gustavus Aldophus College (Minn.) (7-2) and St. Catherine University (Minn.) (3-1), March 2-3 in Rochester, Minn. On the weekend, Arneson was 7-of-11 with six RBI and three doubles. She accumulated a .909 slugging percentage and .636 batting average. Against Dubuque, Arneson was 3-for-5 with three RBI, one coming with two outs in the top of the 7th inning to give the Blugolds the lead. In the Blugolds’ win over Gustavus, Arneson was 1-of-1 with a double and three walks, while also tallying six put-outs. In a 3-1 win over St. Catherine, she was 2-of-3 with two RBI, one double and two singles. Arneson again came up clutch with both her RBI coming with two outs to help the Blugolds score their first and second runs.

Peka had a 0.97 ERA in two appearances as UW-Eau Claire opened its season with a 4-0 record in games played in Rochester, Minn., March 2-3. She earned two wins, pitched 14.1 total innings and struck out 11. In the Blugolds’ win over University of Dubuque (Iowa), Peka started and came back in relief for the win, while also striking out five. Against St. Catherine University, (Minn.), she struck out six in a complete-game win.

The Blugolds (4-0) will be back on the road for a doubleheader with Augustana (IL) on Saturday, March 16 at 1 and 3 p.m. Follow all the Blugold action on Blugold Game Day or on the 'UWEC Blugolds' app on your mobile device.