DENVER – Texas State first baseman Austin O’Neal and right-hander Taylor Black have been named the Western Athletic Conference Baseball Hitter and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for April 8-14.
O’Neal, a junior from Trabuco Canyon, Calif. (Tesoro HS/Santa Ana), led the Bobcats to a 3-1 record last week that included a three-game conference sweep over Louisiana Tech. O’Neal hit .667 (6-for-9). He tallied two home runs, one double, seven RBI and scored four runs. O’Neal’s home run on Sunday helped Texas State complete a comeback from a 5-1 deficit. The three-run homer put the Bobcats up 8-5 to help secure a 13-6 win over Louisiana Tech. O’Neal’s home run on Saturday helped stretch a 7-5 lead into an out-of-reach 9-5 victory. O’Neal led the team with his seven RBI on the week and slugged 1.444 with a .667 on-base percentage.
Black, a sophomore from Allen, Texas (Allen HS), pitched 7.2 scoreless innings with six strikeouts in a 1-0 win over Louisiana Tech on Friday. Black gave up only four hits and went on a stretch from the end of the second inning into the seventh in which he retired 14 of the 17 batters he faced. He did not give up a single extra base hit in his appearance.
The other hitter of the week nominations: CSU Bakersfield sophomore centerfielder Jordie Hein … Dallas Baptist senior outfielder Ronnie Mitchell … New Mexico State junior catcher Tanner Rust … Sacramento State freshman designated hitter Chris Lewis … Seattle U senior shortstop Nate Roberts … UT Arlington junior catcher Greg McCall.
The other pitcher of the week nominations: CSU Bakersfield junior Taylor Aikenhead … Dallas Baptist senior Michael Smith … New Mexico State senior Adam Mott … Seattle U sophomore Garrett Anderson.