Release courtesy of Logan Lawrence of the NCBWA
DALLAS (NCBWA) – The National Collegiate Baseball Writer’s Association released its weekly NCAA Division II National Players of the Week awards for the period ending April 15th. Grand Valley State’s sophomore first baseman Giancarlo Brugnoni is the National Hitter of the Week while Delta State’s junior lefthander Colton Mitchell is the National Pitcher of the Week.
Giancarlo Brugnoni (Grosse Pointe, Mich.) tied an NCAA Division II record with four home runs in four-straight plate appearances against Tiffin on Saturday (Apr. 14). For the week, Brugnoni hit .522 with nine runs, 12 hits, five home runs, 10 RBI, a 1.304 slugging percentage and the first triple of his career. In the first game against Tiffin, Brugnoni led off with a triple and then smacked two home runs to finish the game 3-for-3 with three runs and five RBI. In the second game, Brugnoni hit home runs in his first two plate appearances, finishing the game 2-for-3 with two runs and three RBI. Brugnoni became the first Laker ever with four or more multi-HR games in his career, the first with back-to-back multi-HR games and the first with three or more multi-HR games in a single season. Brugnoni added another long ball on Sunday to give him five home runs in four games. For the season, Brugnoni is hitting .356 with 11 home runs and 28 RBI.
Colton Mitchell (Lake, Miss.) made Delta State history in the Statesmen’s 4-0 home win over New Orleans in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader. The junior turned in a flawless performance on the mound for Delta State, becoming the first player in school history to record a perfect game. The Lake, Miss. native moved his season record to 5-0 after striking out seven and not allowing a UNO runner on base in 7.0 complete innings of work. Mitchell also became just the fourth player in GSC history to notch a perfect game and first since Southern Arkansas’ Brian Smith in 1997.
Division II Regional Players of the Week:
- Atlantic: Mark Darlington, West Virginia Wesleyan (Hitter); Lou Trivino, Slippery Rock (Pitcher)
- Central: Nate Van Roekel, Winona State (Hitter); Tyler Ockuly, Minnesota State (Pitcher)
- East: Matt Benedetto, Dowling (Hitter); Michael Tamburino, Pace (Pitcher)
- Midwest: Giancarlo Brugnoni, Grand Valley State (Hitter); Zach Botjer, Ashland (Pitcher)
- South: Michael Schmidt, North Alabama (Hitter); Colton Mitchell, Delta State (Pitcher)
- South Central: Grant Fink, Missouri Western (Hitter); Stephen Johnson, St. Edward’s (Pitcher)
- Southeast: Cody Maas, Georgia College (Hitter); Ethan Bader, Armstrong Atlantic (Pitcher)
- West: Bo Folkinga, Western Oregon (Hitter); Kevin Bosson, Cal Poly Pomona (Pitcher)
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 Howser Award Player of the Year, Regional Player of the Year and NCBWA All-America voting. The NCBWA also sponsors preseason All-America awards, publication and writing contests.
2012 NCBWA Division II Players of the Week:
- Feb. 8: Chris Miller, Cal Poly Pomona (Hitter); Rick Reyna, Angelo State (Pitcher)
- Feb. 15: Anthony Boza, Lynn (Hitter); Barry Meeks, West Alabama (Pitcher)
- Feb. 22: Joe Andrade, Dixie State (Hitter); Brandon Droge, Newman (Pitcher)
- Feb. 29: Nate Wilder, Arkansas Tech (Hitter); Carl O’Neal, St. Mary’s (Pitcher)
- March 7: Tommy Barnes, Nebraska-Kearney (Hitter); Nolan Snell, Colorado Mesa (Pitcher)
- March 14: Drew Miller, Southwest Baptist (Hitter); Dan McMahon, University of the Sciences (Pitcher)
- March 21: Heath Petrerson, Montevallo (Hitter); Chris Zbin, Southern Connecticut State (Pitcher)
- March 28: Areo Regoli, Nova Southeastern (Hitter); Tim Flight, Southern New Hampshire (Pitcher)
- April 4: Tucker Brown, Central Oklahoma (Hitter); Mark Royer, Millersville (Pitcher)
- April 11: James Roche, Franklin Pierce (Hitter); Derek Hansen, Augustana (Pitcher)
- April 18: Giancarlo Brugnoni, Grand Valley State (Hitter); Colton Mitchell, Delta State (Pitcher)