DALLAS (NCBWA) The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) released its National Player of the Week awards for the period ending May 5. Troy senior catcher Chase Smartt was named National Hitter of the Week, while Illinois senior left-handed pitcher Andy Fisher was named National Pitcher of the Week. The NCBWA Board reviews candidates from each Division I Conference each week and names winners each Tuesday throughout the season.
Smartt, a native of Troy, Ala., was 12-for-19 (.632) with six doubles, two home runs and nine RBI over four games for the Trojans. He posted a 1.263 slugging percentage in addition to scoring six runs and finishing with an 1.895 OPS.
Behind Smartt's bat, Troy went 3-1 on the week with a series win over Sun Belt East Division leader Georgia Southern and a mid-week defeat of SWAC East Division champion Alabama State. Smartt registered an extra-base hit in all four games and moved into eighth place all-time in Troy history with 42 career doubles.
Fisher threw eight shutout innings to help Illinois win a series over No. 19 Indiana. He limited the Hoosiers to three hits and tied a season high with nine strikeouts, as the Illini handed Indiana its second shutout of the season in a 4-0 victory. The left-hander allowed only two base runners to reach second base and retired 14 in a row from the third to seventh innings.
Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. For more information about the NCBWA, visit the association's official website, ncbwa.com.
For more information on the NCBWA Division I National Players of the Week, contact NCBWA Assistant Executive Director Mike Montoro at West Virginia University at 304-293-2821.
2019 NCBWA Division I Players of the Week:
Week ending Feb. 17: Austin Martin, Vanderbilt (Hitter); Grant Judkins, Iowa (Pitcher)
· Week ending Feb. 24: Thomas Dillard, Ole Miss (Hitter); Tommy Henry, Michigan (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 3: Harrison Freed, Butler and TJ Hopkins, South Carolina (Hitter); Tanner Burns, Auburn (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 10: Cameron Warren, Texas Tech (Hitter); Jake Kuchmaner, East Carolina and Chris Gerard, Virginia Tech (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 17: Chris Lanzilli, Wake Forest (Hitter); Jake Kuchmaner, East Carolina (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 24: Tristan Peterson, New Mexico State (Hitter); Connor Thomas, Georgia Tech (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 31: Jake Sanford, WKU (Hitter); Zach Thompson, Kentucky (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 7: Kody Hoese, Tulane (Hitter); Alek Manoah, West Virginia (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 14: Spencer Steer, Oregon (Hitter); Cody Luther, Saint Louis and Ryan Shreve, Pacific (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 21: Logan Wyatt, Louisville (Hitter); Alek Manoah, West Virginia (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 28: Keaton Smith, Nevada (Hitter); Ryan Garcia, UCLA (Pitcher)
· Week ending May 5: Chase Smartt, Troy (Hitter); Andy Fisher, Illinois (Pitcher)
· Week ending May 12: Bryce Ball, Dallas Baptist (Hitter); Micah Kaczor, East Tennessee State (Pitcher)
· Week ending May 19: Andrew Daschbach, Stanford (Hitter); Seth Lonsway, Ohio State (Pitcher)
2019 NCBWA Division I Players of the Month:
February: Nick Gonzales, New Mexico State (Player); John Doxakis, Texas A&M (Pitcher)
· March: Hunter Bishop, Arizona State (Player); Reid Detmers, Louisville (Pitcher)
· April: Adley Rutschman, Oregon State (Player); Alek Manoah, West Virginia (Pitcher)