BASEBALL: Austin Peay’s Phillips, Carson-Newman’s Bradley garner TSWA accolades
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Austin Peay’s Parker Phillips and Carson-Newman’s Matt Bradley were named the Baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association on Tuesday for their performances for games April 9-15.
Phillips batted .556 (10-for-18) with seven extra-base hits, including five home runs, along with 15 RBIs in five games for the Govs. The Collierville, Tenn., native doubled, scored a run and posted three sacrifice flies to start the week at Lipscomb.
The sophomore singled and was hit twice at Murray State before going 8-for-13 with five home runs and 12 RBIs and reaching base in 10-of-15 plate appearances against Eastern Kentucky. He homered in his first three at-bats versus the Colonels, posting a grand slam, a solo homer and a two-run shot, finishing the first game of Friday’s doubleheader 4-for-5 with seven RBIs.
Phillips added another solo home run and a two-run shot in the second contest of the twinbill and was 2-for-5 with two RBIs in the series finale. He is batting .301 with eight doubles, nine home runs, 40 RBIs and 23 runs scored in 33 games this season.
Bradley tossed six shutout innings in a victory over Lenoir-Rhyne, helping the Eagles take 2-of-3 in the weekend series. The Talbott, Tenn., native walked five, hit a batter and struck out five, allowing just three hits in his six innings.
The freshman righthander worked around nine baserunners, retiring the side in order just once, in a scoreless game until the Eagles plated five runs in the bottom of the sixth. Bradley stranded seven Lenoir-Rhyne runners in the contest and improved to 1-1 with a 1.37 ERA in seven appearances this season covering 19.2 innings, striking out 19 and giving up just 12 hits. Opponents are batting .182 against him.
2018 TSWA BASEBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
February 20 – Kyle Blackwell, Cumberland University (Player); Dillon Cate, Carson-Newman (Pitcher)
February 27 – Fernando Garcia, Bryan College (Player); Grant Boyd, King University (Pitcher)
March 6 – Sam Mang, Trevecca University (Player); Stephen Chamblee, Bryan College (Pitcher)
March 13 – Sam Mang, Trevecca University (Player); Will Neely, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 20 – David Scoggins, Bryan College (Player); Sean Hunley, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 27 – Hayden Lewis, Union University (Player); Mason Hickman, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
April 3 – Drew Huff, Middle Tennessee (Player); Grant Boyd, King University (Pitcher)
April 10 – Ethan Harrison, Trevecca University (Player); Daniel Tolano, Tennessee Wesleyan (Pitcher)
SOFTBALL: Union’s Gabby Morris, Tennessee’s Arnold named TSWA award winners
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Union’s Gabby Morris and Tennessee’s Caylan Arnold were named the Softball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association on Tuesday for their performances for games April 9-15.
Morris batted .632 (12-for-19) with two doubles, three triples, one home run, four RBIs and seven runs scored in six games for the Bulldogs. The Adamsville, Tenn., native collected three hits with a double and two RBIs to open the week at Delta State.
The sophomore recorded five hits in a doubleheader at LeMoyne-Owen with three triples, one RBI and four runs scored. She was 2-for-5 with two walks and two runs scored in two games versus Rhodes College and finished the week with a double, a solo homer and a walk in a single game at West Alabama.
Morris is batting .416 with five doubles, six triples, seven home runs, 28 RBIs and 28 runs scored in 42 games this season while also posting an 11-9 record in the circle in 116.1 innings pitched.
Arnold posted a pair of victories in two starts, helping the Lady Vols sweep LSU and win their first SEC series in over a month. The Maryville, Tenn., native allowed two runs on eight hits in 6.1 innings in the series opener, both of those runs in the seventh innings. She walked three and struck out six.
The sophomore righthander worked 5.0 innings in the series finale, giving up two runs on five hits with two strikeouts, upping her record to 17-4 with a 2.28 ERA in 39 appearances this season covering 147.1 innings. She has 174 strikeouts and opponents are batting just .208 against her.
2018 TSWA WOMEN’S SOFTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
February 20 – Bailey Alexander, Trevecca University (Player); Lacie Rinus, Carson-Newman (Pitcher)
February 27 – Jocelyn De La Cruz, Middle Tennessee (Player); Caylan Arnold, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 6 – Kyler Trosclair-Klatt, Memphis (Player); Caylan Arnold, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 13 – Lexi Rouse, Belmont (Player); Molly Smith, Memphis (Pitcher)
March 20 – Essence Strambler, Maryville College (Player); Kayley Caplinger, Cumberland University (Pitcher)
March 27 – Brigid Antonelli, Cumberland University (Player); Savannah Carr, Trevecca University (Pitcher)
April 3 – Morgan Brewer, Maryville College (Player); Savannah Carr, Trevecca University (Pitcher)
April 10 – Megan Groves, Trevecca University (Player); Taylor Waldrop, Tennessee Tech (Pitcher)