DALLAS (NCBWA) Six home runs and 17 RBIs on the week for Michael Morelli of Mount Saint Mary College and a 2-0 week with a no-hitter for Steven Ramsdell of Allegheny College have earned them the fourth NCAA Division III National Hitter and Pitcher of the Week honors respectively for March 18-24, 2013, as voted on by a panel of D-III members of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
Morelli, a senior first baseman from Washingtonville, N.Y., collected 14 hits in 21 at-bats for a .667 batting average during a 3-3 week for the Knights, knocking in 17 runs and scoring 10 of his own. He pounded out eight extra-base hits with two doubles and six home runs, compiling 34 total bases and a 1.619 slugging percentage. He also drew four walks for a .720 on base percentage. Highlighting his week, he went 6-for-7 with four home runs in a doubleheader at SUNY-Maritime on Mar. 24, and had seven RBIs in the Knights' 9-6 win over SUNY-New Paltz on Mar. 18. Morelli was named the Skyline Conference Player of the Week.
Ramsdell, a sophomore southpaw from North East, Pa., dominated for the Gators over spring break in Winter Haven, Fla., recording two complete-game shutouts, one of them a no-hitter. On Monday, he threw a four-hit 1-0 victory over Plattsburgh State, striking out two and retiring 10 straight at one point. On Friday, he recorded six strikeouts with one walk, retiring the first 12 hitters he faced, en route to his six-inning no-hit effort in an 11-0 victory over Hamilton. On the week, he struck out eight batters and allowed a .093 opponents' batting average in 13 innings of work. Ramsdell was named the North Coast Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week.
Honorable Mention Hitters: Hayden Tsutsui (Carleton) - .679 (19-28), 5 doubles, 3 home runs, 14 RBI, 9 runs, 2 stolen bases, 1.179 slugging pct.; Bill Parave (Penn State-Abington) - .722 (13-18), 3 doubles, 8 RBI, 5 runs, 2 stolen bases, .889 slugging pct.; Quinlan Milen Rojek (Dominican IL) - .800 (8-10), 1 double, 1 triple, 1 home run (cycle), 6 RBI, 1.400 slugging pct.; Sean Kettering (Otterbein), .481 (13-27), 5 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs, 17 RBI, 8 runs, .963 slugging pct.; Chris Sweeney (King's PA) - .636 (7-11), 3 doubles, 2 home runs, 7 RBI, 5 runs, 1.454 slugging pct.; Jordan Nieman (Manchester) - .563 (9-16), 3 doubles, 7 RBI, 2 runs, .750 slugging pct.; Christian LaBlanc (Texas Lutheran) - .667 (8-12), 1 double, 3 RBI, 2 run, 4 stolen bases, .750 slugging pct.
Honorable Mention Pitchers: Dan LaRocca (Ramapo) - 2-0, 0.00 ERA, 18.0 ip, 2 cg, 6 hits, 10 strikeouts; Will Barrack (Massachusetts-Boston) - 1-0, 2.57 ERA, 7.0 ip, 3 hits, 16 strikeouts; Brooks Fortenberry (Mississippi College) - 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 ip, 1 cg, 1 hit, 10 strikeouts; Seth Davis (Augustana) - 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 ip, 2 hits, 9 strikeouts; Ryan Kramer (Dickinson) - 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 ip, 1 cg, 2 hits, 9 strikeouts; Bryce Murphy (Manchester) - 0-0, 3 saves, 0.00 ERA, 8.0 ip, 6 hits, 6 strikeouts; Daryn Streed (Rockford) - 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 8.0 ip, 3 hits, 7 strikeouts.
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