PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The American Athletic Conference has announced the winners of the league’s weekly baseball honors for the week ending April 22.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Grayson Padgett * Jr. * OF * Houston
Padgett hit his second walk-off home run of the season in the seventh inning of Game 2 at No. 24 Wichita State to help his team clinch a key series. He led the Cougars through a 4-1 week, batting .412 with seven hits, four RBIs, four runs scored, a .765 slugging percentage and three extra base hits, as the Cougars completed a weekend sweep of the Shockers to remain locked in first place in the conference standings for a fourth-straight week.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Cre Finfrock * R-Jr. * RHP * UCF
Finfrock held the league’s top offense to one hit, while striking out eight through 6.0 shutout innings in a 1-0 win over USF to open the series on Friday. The right-hander faced four over the minimum (22) and retired the side in order three times.
WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
J.T. Perez * Sr. * LHP * Cincinnati
Perez tossed a complete-game shutout in a 1-0 series opener win over No. 24 UConn. The southpaw fanned a career-high 10 batters, scattering six hits and a pair of walks. He retired the side in order three times.
Troy Stefanski * Sr. * OF * UConn
Stefanski enjoyed three multi-hit games through a 3-1 week, including a series win over Cincinnati—one of three teams that entered the weekend tied for first in conference standings. He batted .412 with eight hits, seven RBIs, four runs scored, three doubles and a home run. He went 3-for-6 with two RBIs and a pair of doubles in an 8-5 rubber match win on Sunday.
Dwanya Williams-Sutton * Jr. * OF * ECU
Williams-Sutton tallied a hit in all four games last week, including a 3-for-5 performance in a 9-2 win at No. 3 Duke on Tuesday. He batted a team-best .562 through ECU’s 4-0 week, collecting six hits in a series sweep at Memphis. He went 2-for-4 with two doubles in Game 3.
Noah Yager * So. * LHP * USF
Yager collected 15 strikeouts through 8.1 shutout innings out of the bullpen in two appearances. He surrendered just five hits and three walks. Yager went 5.1 innings on Tuesday in a 7-1 win against North Florida, striking out a career-high 10 and picking up the win. On Sunday, in a 4-2 win against UCF, Yager struck out five over 3.0 scoreless innings.
Kody Hoese * So. * 3B * Tulane
Hoese led the Green Wave through a 3-1 week against nonconference opponents, including a 10-9 walk-off win over No. 18 LSU and a series victory over East Tennessee State. He hit the game-tying double and then scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth against LSU on Wednesday. Hoese cumulatively logged three multi-hit games, eight hits, a .471 batting average, seven runs scored, five RBIs, a home run and a double throughout the week.