FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES
DALLAS – The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) released the Pro-Line Athletic National Player of the Week awards for the period ending May 11, today. Coastal Carolina junior first baseman David Anderson was named National Hitter of the Week, while Long Beach State senior right-hander Andrew Liebel was named National Pitcher of the Week. The NCBWA Board reviews candidates from each Division I Conference each week and names winners each Tuesday throughout the season.
Anderson had a monster power weekend in the Chanticleers’ three-game sweep of High Point, going 8-15 with five home runs, nine RBIs and a 1.533 slugging percentage. Although hitless in the opener, the Lexington, S.C., native was intentionally walked in the 11th inning, a move that set up Tommy Baldridge’s game-winning single. Anderson then went 4-5 with three home runs, three runs scored and seven RBIs in game two and came back with a 4-5 effort with two homers and two RBIs in the series finale. Anderson, believed to be the first Coastal player to hit three home runs in a game in the Chanticleers’ Division I history, also pitched two scoreless and hitless innings on Sunday with one strikeout. For the week, Anderson batted .533, posted a .563 OBA and tallied 23 total bases.
Liebel pitched his second consecutive complete-game shutout with a 3-0 win over UC Santa Barbara Friday evening. Up against the conference’s second-best hitting team, the Pomona, Calif., native allowed just five hits, walked two and struck out six batters and increased his consecutive scoreless innings to 20.1. He pitched just three over the minimum, hurling a complete game on 109 pitches in two hours and twelve minutes. Liebel has won his fourth straight decision and lowered his ERA to a league-leading 1.69.
Fort Worth-based Pro-Line Athletic supplies the official cap to more than 100 Division I college teams and official uniforms and team wear to six Division 1 college teams. This is the fourth year Pro-Line has sponsored the NCBWA’s Players of the Week. The sponsorship provides for plaques to be awarded to each of the weekly winners and other promotional consideration. For more information about Pro-Line, visit their Web site at: www.prolineathletic.com.
Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. For more information about the NCBWA, visit the association’s official Web site, www.ncbwa.com.
For more information, contact NCBWA Assistant Executive Director Mike Montoro (304-293-2821, mike.montoro@mail.wvu.edu).
2008 WINNERS:
Pro-Line Athletic Hitter of the Week – Feb. 25 – Dustin Ackley, North Carolina; March 4 – Sawyer Carroll, Kentucky; March 11 – Aaron Murphree, Arkansas; March 18 – Tyler Kuhn, West Virginia; March 25 – Mike McKenna, Florida Atlantic; April 1 – Alan Ahmady, Fresno State; April 8 – Ryan Pond, NC State; April 15 – Jacob Priday, Missouri; April 22 – Dexter Fontenot, Louisiana-Monroe; April 29 – Ty Wright, Georgia Southern; May 6 – Clay Whittemore, Jacksonville State; May 13 – David Anderson, Coastal Carolina
Pro-Line Athletic Pitcher of the Week – Feb. 25 – Lance Lynn, Ole Miss; March 4 – Joey Seal, Norfolk State, Barry Bowden, Southern Miss; March 11 – David Coulon, Arizona; March 18 – Ricky Bowen, Mississippi State; March 25 – Aaron Crow, Missouri; April 1 – Branond McClurg, Lipscomb, Josh Romanski, San Diego; April 8 – Nick Haughian, Washington; April 15 – Stephen Strasburg, San Diego State; April 22 – Chris Manno, Duke; April 29 – Chris Hernandez, Miami; May 6 – Kenn Kasparek, Texas; May 13 – Andrew Liebel, Long Beach State
