Hitter honors shared, Outsen gains pitcher award

Justin Taylor, Lancaster Bible (left) and Brian Bohman, Penn State-Behrend (right)
Lancaster Bible/Penn State-Behrend athletics photos

Lancaster Bible’s Justin Taylor and Penn State-Behrend’s Brian Bohman each picked up a share of the Hitter of the Week accolade, and Josh Outsen of St. Joseph’s College of Long Island was tabbed the Pitcher of the Week in the Division III National Collegiate Baseball Writers’ Association awards for the period of March 7-13.

Taylor, a junior shortstop from Greenville, S.C., sent five of his 10 hits out of the park last week while batting .556 with an on-base percentage of .600 and a slugging percentage of 1.444. The North Eastern Athletic Conference co-Hitter of the Week’s five home runs helped him produce 11 RBIs, while he also scored seven runs, hit a double, drew two walks and struck out just once in 20 plate appearances. He had a home run in four of the five Charger contests during their spring break trip to his home state of South Carolina, including two on both of his hits that produced five RBIs and three runs scored in a 35-0 win over Valley Forge Thursday. He also sent one deep in a 6-5 win over Muhlenberg Wednesday. Bohman, a junior catcher from Erie, Pa., was just as impressive, hitting at a .566 mark (17-30) in a 7-2 opening week of play for the Lions. He drilled three home runs, two triples, two doubles and drew 10 walks. Bohman knocked in 17 runs, scored 12, and stole two bases. He went 2-for-2 with a home run, triple, three walks and four RBIs in a 9-6 win over Kenyon.

Josh Outsen, St. Joseph's (L.I.)
St. Joseph's (L.I.) athletics photo

Outsen, a junior right-handed starting pitcher from Lindenhurst, N.Y., compiled a
nine-strikeout, seven-inning no-hit gem versus Yeshiva March 11. Five baserunners reached due to two walks, two hit batsmen and an error on the Skyline Conference Pitcher of the Week but none of them made it to third base. 

Honorable Mention Hitter: Kurtis Kloke, jr., OF, Pacific – Hit .636 (7-11) in Pacific's weekend sweep of Lewis & Clark 10-1, 11-6 and 12-1, at the home of the Hillsboro Hops, Ron Tonkin Field.  Included were two doubles, a triple, and two home runs for a 1.545 slugging percentage.  He scored six runs and drove in another 10 while walking three times with only one strikeout and posting a .714 on-base percentage.  The Boxers' left fielder started with a 2-4 game, scoring once and driving in two, then was 2-3 with two runs and three RBIs, and 3-4 with three runs and five RBIs in the finale.  He hit a three-run homer in game two and a grand slam in the third inning of game three.  He also added a stolen base and recorded eight putouts. 

Honorable Mention Pitcher: Kyle Borton, sr., RHP, Westminster (Pa.) - Tossed a one-hit shutout in Westminster’s 14-0 win over Maritime in the first game of a two-game set last Friday at the Florida Coast Spring Training event. The senior righty struck out a career-high 10 while facing just four over the minimum.

National Players of the week for:
March 7-13
: Justin Taylor, Lancaster Bible, Brian Bohman, Penn St.-Behrend, and Josh Outsen, St. Joseph’s (L.I.)
February 29-March 6: Joe Zimmer, Whitman and Matt Backlund, Alvernia
February 22-28: Andrew Waters, Trinity (Texas) and Andrew Stull, Rose-Hulman
February 15-21: Tommy Vitaletti, Christopher Newport and Greg Schneider, Frostburg St.

Honorable Mention Hitter: Kyle Goodwin, sr., OF, Salisbury (Md.) - Hit .667 (10-for-15) with eight RBIs, eight runs scored and three home runs in a 2-1 week for the Sea Gulls. In a win over Johns Hopkins, Goodwin tallied half of the team's hits and accounted for over half of its runs. He also hit two doubles and one triple, slugged 1.533 and notched 23 total bases on the week. 

Honorable Mention Pitchers: Rich Power, jr., LHP, Gettysburg (Pa.) - Opened the year with 13 consecutive scoreless innings, striking out 13 while earning a pair of victories. In the team's season-opening 12-0 win at Hood, the southpaw tossed six scoreless frames to pick up the win. He followed up with a sparkling performance in Gettysburg's 12-0 victory versus Rivier in Florida, firing a three-hit, seven-inning shutout while racking up a career-high 12 strikeouts. He did not walk a batter and faced just three over the minimum.

Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. Members receive a membership card, directory, newsletter updates and official votes in the Dick Howser Player of the Year Award, Regional Player of the Year and NCBWA All-America voting. The NCBWA also sponsors preseason All-America awards, publication and writing contests.