DENVER ? Nevada third baseman Jason Rodriguez and Fresno State pitcher Tanner Scheppers have been named the Western Athletic Conference Baseball Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for March 10-16.
Rodriguez, a senior from Riverside, Calif. (Riverside CC), hit .562 (9-for-16) with nine runs, two doubles, four home runs and 10 RBI as the Pack split four games last week. In his first game of the week, Rodriguez went 3-for-5 at the plate with two runs, three RBI, a double, and a two-run homer against Saint Mary’s. He followed up that performance with a 2-for-5 effort with a run scored, three RBI and another two-run home run against UC Davis. In the first game of the weekend series against Oregon State, Rodriguez was 3-for-3 with five runs scored, three RBI, two walks, a double, a solo home run and a two-run homer as all three hits went for extra bases. He finished the week with a 1.438 slugging percentage and a .650 on base mark.
Scheppers, a junior from Laguna Niguel, Calif. (Dana Hills HS), was named Most Outstanding Pitcher of the 30th annual Pepsi Johnny Quik Classic last week. In his one appearance, he recorded 10 strikeouts in seven innings of work. Scheppers allowed just two hits and did not allow a run as the Bulldogs shutout Utah 10-0. He lowered his ERA from 1.42 to 1.04 after the effort and improved his record to 3-1 on the season. He now has 39 strikeouts in four games (26 innings) while walking just seven this season.
The other hitter of the week nominations were junior Erik Wetzel, Fresno State; freshman Sean Montplaisir, Hawai?i; junior Nick Grunenwald, Louisiana Tech; senior Tyler Hardt, New Mexico State and freshman Jason Martin, San Jose State.
The other pitcher of the week nominations were senior Josh Schneider, Hawai?i; senior Alan Knotts, Louisiana Tech; senior Rod Scurry, Nevada; junior Heath Goin, New Mexico State; junior Jose Ramirez, Sacramento State and junior Scott Sobczak, San Jose State.