DALLAS (NCBWA) The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association released its weekly NCAA Division II National Players of the Week awards for the period ending April 8th. Franklin Pierce senior outfielder James Roche is the National Hitter of the Week while Augustana junior righthander Derek Hansen is the National Pitcher of the Week.
James Roche (Arlington, Mass.) Roche hit for a.417 batting average and a .500 on-base percentage and 1.042 slugging percentage for a 1.542 OPS in a 7-0 week for the Ravens. He went 10-for-24 with five home runs, 14 RBI and nine runs scored. The grad student hit a walk-off home run against Southern New Hampshire on Tuesday, hit an inside-the-park grand slam against Adelphi on Friday and had a two-home run game against Pace on Saturday. Fort he season, Roche is hitting .360 with 12 doubles, eight home runs and 31 RBI.
Derek Hansen (Fergus Falls, Minn.) tied an Augustana school record for strikeouts in a 2-0, eight-inning win over Minnesota-Crookston on Friday. Hansens 17 strikeouts tied Clayton Kopple's mark set in 1971 in a 3-2 win over the University of South Dakota. Hansen, who is now 3-3, put together a one hitter to go along with his record-tying outing.
Division II Regional Players of the Week:
Atlantic: Nathan Minnich, Shepherd (Hitter); Nick Umberger, Shippensburg (Pitcher)
· Central: Bryan Lippincott, Concordia-St. Paul (Hitter); Derek Hansen, Augustana (Pitcher)
· East: James Roche, Franklin Pierce (Hitter); Ryan Leach, Franklin Pierce (Pitcher)
· Midwest: Wade Kaido, Ashland (Hitter); Aaron Hilt, Ashland (Pitcher)
· South: Anthony Boza, Lynn (Hitter); Joey Cuda, Eckerd (Pitcher)
· South Central: Ryan Busboom, Fort Hays (Hitter); Shawn Talkington, Emporia State (Pitcher)
· Southeast: Josh Haley, UNC Pembroke (Hitter); Michael Shreves, Montevallo (Pitcher)
· West: Blake Miller, Western Oregon (Hitter); Kirk Lind, Western Oregon (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. 5: Chris Miller, Cal Poly Pomona (Hitter);
Rick Reyna, Angelo State (Pitcher)
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Feb. 12: Anthony Boza, Lynn (Hitter); Barry Meeks, West Alabama (Pitcher)
· Feb. 19: Joe Andrade, Dixie State (Hitter);
Brandon Droge, Newman (Pitcher)
· Feb.
26: Nate Wilder, Arkansas Tech (Hitter); Carl O'Neal, St. Mary's (Pitcher)
· March 4: Tommy Barnes, Nebraska-Kearney (Hitter);
Nolan Snell, Colorado Mesa (Pitcher)
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March 11: Drew Miller, Southwest Baptist (Hitter);
Dan McMahon, University of the Sciences (Pitcher)
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March 18: Heath Peterson, Montevallo (Hitter);
Chris Zbin, Southern Connecticut State (Pitcher)
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March 25: Areo Regoli, Nova Southeastern (Hitter);
Tim Flight, Southern New Hampshire (Pitcher)
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April 1: Tucker Brown, Central Oklahoma (Hitter);
Mark Royer, Millersville (Pitcher)
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April 8: James Roche, Franklin Pierce (Hitter); Derek Hansen, Augustana (Pitcher)
· April 15: Giancarlo Brugnoni, Grand Valley
State (Hitter); Colton Mitchell, Delta State (Pitcher)
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April 22: Scott Zuback, Lock Haven (Hitter);
Jaden Dillon, Texas A&M-Kingsville (Pitcher)
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April 29: Alex Schrupp, Metro State (Hitter);
Logan Birr, St. Cloud State (Pitcher)
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May 6: Adam Shank, St. Edward's (Hitter);
Thomas Lee, Sonoma State (Pitcher)