PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The American Athletic Conference has announced the winners of the league’s weekly baseball honors for the week ending May 13.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Grant Mathews * R-So. * DH * Tulane
Mathews was a force at the plate through a series win over Memphis, batting .667 with eight hits, four home runs, five RBIs and a 1.750 slugging percentage. He enjoyed a multi-hit game all three contests over the weekend. Mathews belted three home runs in Game 2 to tie a conference record and help the Green Wave clinch the series. The Green Wave’s winning weekend earned them one of the league’s eight bids to the 2018 conference baseball championship.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Aaron Fletcher * Jr. * LHP * Houston
Fletcher struck out five through 7.0 innings of work in a 6-5 win on Saturday, as Houston clinched the series at No. 18 UConn. The win gave the Cougars a share of the regular season title for a second-straight season. The southpaw junior surrendered only one earned run and walked none through his outing, lowering his ERA to 1.73 this season in his sixth win of the year.
WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
Thad Ward * Jr. * RHP * UCF
Ward was lights out in UCF’s 5-4 series-opener win against No. 26 Oklahoma, as the junior fanned eight batters through 6.0 hitless frames in the 14-inning game. Ward retired the side in order five times through his outing.
Bryant Packard * So. * DH/OF * ECU
Packard had a hit in all five games, including a series win over Cincinnati, extending his hit streak to 28, good for the third-longest active streak in the country. He batted .350 on the week, driving in three runs and recording seven hits and two leadoff homers. Packard brought home a pair of runs in a 13-6 win over Cincinnati on Saturday and scored six runs on the week, including one in all five games and the game-tying run in ECU's series-clinching win Sunday.
Duke Stunkel Jr. * Sr. * OF * USF
Stunkel Jr. led the Bulls with a .588 batting average on the week (10-for-17) in four games. He had two doubles, five runs scored and three RBIs. Stunkel Jr. hit in every game, beginning with two hits at No. 1 Florida on Tuesday. Stunkel Jr. had three more hits against Wichita St. on Friday to begin the weekend series, then had a career-best four hits in Game 2 on Saturday. The senior slugged .706 and had a .650 on base percentage.
Joe Davis * Jr. * DH * Houston
Davis helped Houston to clinching a share of the conference’s regular season title in a series win at No. 18 UConn, batting .429 (6-for-14) with four RBIs, four runs scored, two home runs and two doubles. He had a powerful performance in Friday’s series opener, going 4-for-4 with four RBIs, as each of his hits went for extra bases, including two doubles and a pair of home runs.
Greyson Jenista * Jr. * OF/1B * Wichita State
Jenista led the Shockers to a three-win week by going 9-for-20 (.450) with eight runs, two doubles, two home runs and eight RBIs in five games last week. In the midweek win over South Dakota State he was 2-for-3 with three RBIs and a home run. In Friday’s run-rule win over No. 22 USF, he finished 4-for-5 with four runs, two RBIs and another homer. He dove in three more runs and added two hits in Sunday’s series finale with the Bulls.