Coppin State sophomore Nazier McIlwain was selected as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Baseball Player of the Week, the conference office announced today. Norfolk State’s Stephen Baughan and North Carolina Central’s Jake Raby earned Co-Rookie of the Week honors, while Norfolk State senior Devin Hemmerich was named Pitcher of the Week.
McIlwain (5-11, 235, So., Passiac, N.J.) went a combined 10-for-16 (.625) at the plate in four games this past week, driving in 10 runs and hitting two long balls. After going 3-for-5 against Georgetown, he was a combined 7-for-11 as the Eagles took two of three games from Delaware State. He was 3-for-4 at the plate in each of the first two games in the series, and in the second game, he hit two home runs and had five RBIs.
Baughan (6-3, 250, Fr., Richmond, Va.) hit .615 (8-for-13) for the week, recording five RBIs and scoring four times. He hit three doubles for the week, and Baughan recorded three straight multi-hit games in a three-game sweep of conference foe Maryland Eastern Shore. He drove in three runs in the first game of that series, and Baughan followed that up in the second game with a pair of doubles.
Raby (6-2, 220, Fr., Granite Falls, N.C.) hit .438 (7-for-16) for the week, including a 7-for-13 effort in the Eagles’ three-game sweep of conference foe Savannah State. He had nine RBIs and six runs scored for the week, and Raby had two doubles and a home run in the second game against the Tigers, driving in five runs and falling a triple shy of hitting for the cycle. His .750 slugging percentage for the week was the best on the team.
Hemmerich (6-1, 190, Sr., Norfolk, Va.) struck out a combined 20 batters in two starts this past week, giving up just one earned run in a combined 18.0 innings of work. He had 10 strikeouts each in conference wins over Delaware State and Maryland Eastern Shore, tying his career high, and he has now recorded three straight complete games. Against MDES, Hemmerich scattered six hits and did not issue a walk.
Other Top Performers
Tyler Krull (B-CU) gave up just one earned one in a combined 7.1 innings of work, including six innings in a 9-2 win over Dartmouth.
Anthony Maldonado (B-CU) went 6.2 innings, striking out three, in picking up a series-opening win over North Carolina A&T State.
Danny Rodriguez (B-CU) hit .522 (12-for-23) for the week with seven RBIs and four runs scored, including home runs in each of the Wildcats’ last two games against North Carolina A&T State.
Quinn Gleed (CSU) picked up his second win of the season against Delaware State, going the full seven innings.
Jacob Lewis (CSU) struck out four batters in 3.1 innings of work against Delaware State.
Ciaran Devenney (DSU) was 5-for-15 at the plate (.333) for the week, hitting a home run in the series finale against Coppin State.
Ryan Anderson (FAMU) struck out six in 7.1 innings without giving up an earned run against South Florida.
Eric Blanc, Jr. (FAMU) was a combined 3-for-5 at the plate in a three-game series against South Florida.
Ben Ellzey (FAMU) hit .381 (8-for-21) for the week, recording three-hit games against Mercer and South Florida.
Jamison Trower (MDES) had four multi-hit games last week, including all three games of the Hawks’ series against Norfolk State.
Jeff Hagen (NCCU) struck out six in five shutout innings to pick up his first career win over Savannah State.
Zach Michalski (NCCU) drove in six runs and hit .579 for the week, including a 4-for-4 performance with four RBIs in the series opener against Savannah State.
Justin Burrell (NSU) drove in a combined six runs and scored seven times in helping the Spartans go 5-1 last week, hitting .545 in a three-game sweep of Maryland Eastern Shore.