(Rochester, Minn.) – After the first month of the college baseball season, some future Honkers’ are playing their best ball yet. Mike Echavia went deep twice and Blake Workman has been pitching lights out entering conference play. Here is the recap of last week’s action.
Ryan Dorney (RHP) – St. Martin’s (7-13)
Ryan went six innings against Northwest Nazarene in his fifth start of the season. He gave up two runs (one earned) on nine hits. After the fourth inning, he held the Crusaders scoreless, allowing St. Martin’s to make a late comeback. The Saints scored once in the final frame, but fell 1-2. Dorney fell to 0-4, but lowered his ERA to 1.85. St. Martin’s hosts Western Oregon this weekend for a four-game series.
Dustin Demeter (INF) – Hawaii (11-8)
Dustin collected two hits in both Wednesday and Thursday’s games against Indiana, scoring twice and driving in a run. That marked his fifth multi-hit game of the season. Demeter is batting .288 with 13 RBIs on the season. Hawaii hosts San Jose State next week for a four-game series starting on Thursday.
Ryan Thompson (RHP) – Illinois (5-12)
Thompson pitched the final inning of the Illini’s 11-5 win over Toledo on Friday. He gave up a run on one hit with a strikeout. He faced the Rockets again on Sunday, throwing 2.2 scoreless innings in a 4-10 loss. He surrendered only a hit and two walks, while striking out two batters. Thompson is 0-1 with a 10.64 ERA this season. Illinois hosts Illinois State later today and then Michigan State for a three-game series this weekend.
Mike Echavia (OF) – Nevada (5-15)
Echavia collected hits in four of the five games this week, including two multi-hit games. He also hit his second and third home runs of the season against Sacramento State and Utah. He combined to go 6-22 (.273) with two doubles, six runs, six RBIs, and two walks. Echavia is batting .324 with seven doubles in 2017. The Wolfpack travel to San Francisco later today before hosting Air Force for three games this weekend.
Josh Nashed (RHP/DH) – San Jose State (9-9)
Nashed produced both on the mound and at the plate for the Spartans. He went four innings in his start against Nevada on Friday. Only one run scored on five hits. He walked a batter with five strikeouts. Josh also went 2-for-3 as the designated hitter. He came in big for San Jose on Sunday. The Spartans were down 4-5 in the 10th inning. Nashed lead off the inning with a solo home run to tie the game. San Jose scored the winning run later that inning. Josh is batting .243 and has a 0-1 record with a 4.97 ERA as a pitcher. San Jose travels to Pacific (Calif.) later today
Griffin Neuer (OF) – Bellarmine (12-8)
Neuer collected a hit and scored a run in three straight games for the Knights. He also brought in a run, walked four times, and stole a base. Griffin is batting .394 with 16 runs on the season. Bellarmine hosts Southern Indiana for a four-game series this weekend.
Highlight Player of the Week
Blake Workman (RHP) – #7 Cal State Fullerton (14-5)
Blake has been pitching at a very high level lately. He pitched three scoreless frames against #12 Arizona, striking out five batters and only surrendering a hit. Workman hasn’t given up a run in his last 8.1 innings and has only let one runner score in his last five outings (13 innings). In that span, he has record 15 strikeouts.
Two weeks ago, Blake also recorded two wins in six days against Arizona State and Gonzaga. On Sunday, he recorded his first save of the season against New Mexico. Workman has a 1.09 ERA in 17.0 innings this season. The Titans travel to San Diego tonight before a three-game road series at Long Beach State this weekend.
*Rankings by Baseball America
