University of Tennessee Athletics
TENNESSEE'S SARAH FEKETE HAS SURGERY TO STABILIZE BROKEN JAW
March 25, 2005 | Softball
March 25, 2005
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Jenny Moshak, University of Tennessee Assistant Athletics Director for Sports Medicine, announced today that Lady Vol junior center fielder Sarah Fekete had undergone surgery.
"Today's procedure was performed to stabilize Sarah's broken lower jaw," said Moshak. "The surgery was performed at the University of Tennessee Medical Center by oral surgeon Dr. John Hudson. We expect a four-week period of recovery.
The injury was suffered in the top of the seventh inning during Thursday's 10-0 win over the Virginia Cavaliers in Charlottesville, Va., when the left-handed hitting Fekete was struck in the face mask by a pitch. This had already been a challenging year for the Maryville, Tenn., native. She was hit in the forehead by a line drive foul ball while standing in the on-deck circle during the opening inning of a Feb. 26 match up against then-No. 1 California (3-7 L) at the Palm Springs Classic and was forced to sit out UT's loss to Notre Dame the next morning while recouperating.
"It's unfortunate that when you play this game and are having such a great season that injuries such as this have to occur," said Lady Vol Co-Head Coach Ralph Weekly. "Sarah Fekete is a true gamer, and Karen (Co-Head Coach Weekly) and I as well as the team know she'll be back with us as soon as possible. While she's absent from the line-up, we have several young players who we are certain will step up their game. The impressive thing about Sarah is that everything she has achieved in softball has been through hard work and tremendous dedication to the game.
The Maryville, Tenn., native had registered a superb 2005 season to this point in helping the Tennessee Lady Vols (37-4, 7-1 SEC) to their best start in program history and a No. 4 national ranking. At the time of her injury against Virginia, Fekete was leading the Southeastern Conference in hitting at an impressive .505 on 56-of-111 at the plate. She currently leads the Lady Vols in on-base percentage at .563 and is tied with junior third baseman Kristi Durant for second on the squad in hits with 56. Her team-best 28 thefts have established Fekete as the UT career stolen base leader with 61 to far outdistance former Lady Vol Kenyail Norris' previous school mark of 42 thefts. After closing the 2004 campaign on a 10-game hitting streak, she opened this season in record-setting style by reaching base safely in 14-consecutive contests to establish a new Tennessee school hitting streak mark at 24-straight contests.
The No. 4 Lady Vols are off this weekend before continuing SEC play with a three-game home series scheduled against Kentucky over March 29-30. A Tuesday doubleheader will commence at 4 p.m. at Tennessee's Tyson Park with a single game slated for Wednesday at 4 p.m. Check into www.utladyvols.com for live stats or call the Lady Vol hotline at 865-974-8700 (#6) for voicemail updates.
