Shin Becomes Historic PGCBL Award Winner for Ironbacks
NEW HARTFORD, N.Y – Niagara shortstop Carter Shin has become the first player representing a Canadian team to be selected as a Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL) Player of the Week. Shin joins three other players in Week 5's selection of the best performances across the league from June 30-July 6.
East Division
Pitcher of the Week: Payton Hochhalter, Boonville (University of Jamestown)
Player of the Week: Justin Ford, Saugerties (Seton Hall University)
Hochhalter capped off his superb week on Saturday by pitching seven strong innings in a 10-3 Boonville win over Oneonta. In that game, which earned him his first victory of the summer, Hochhalter allowed just one run on four hits. He struck out four and didn't walk a batter. That outing closed out a three-appearance week in which Hochhalter tossed two scoreless innings in a July 1 win over Oneonta, and two-thirds of an inning during the Lumberjacks' 2-2 tie against Mohawk Valley on July 3rd. For the week, he posted a 0.93 ERA and a .72 WHIP with seven strikeouts.
Ford knocked in eight runs and batted .529 with nine hits over 17 at-bats for Saugerties, who are on a four-game winning streak. Ford had three-hit games on July 1st and July 3th, when he went 3-4 with a double and three RBIs as the Stallions defeated Utica 6-5. He followed that up with two more two-RBI games and also scored in each of the next two wins for Saugerties. Ford's average is up to .391 on the year and his 30 total RBI leads the league, while his 28 runs scored ranks second in the PGCBL.
West Division
Pitcher of the Week: Aidan Klimtzak, Niagara Falls (Carson-Newman University)
Player of the Week: Carter Shin, Niagara (University of Mary)
Shin had hits in eight of his 16 at-bats and scored a league-leading eight runs during the week. He was 4-4 with two doubles against Jamestown on July 1st, one of three multi-hit games on the week. In Sunday's opening game 8-0 win over Niagara Falls, Shin went 2-4 with a run scored and an RBI. The infielder is hitting .356 on the year with 17 runs scored, 14 RBI and 6 stolen bases.
Klimtzak spun a gem for the Americans in the second game of their doubleheader across the border. He went the distance and issued just one hit while striking out four in a masterful 7-inning effort that concluded in a dramatic 1-0 victory for Niagara Falls. Klimtzak improves to 2-0 on the season and holds a 0.93 ERA and a 0.62 WHIP through 9.2 innings pitched.
Previous Players and Pitchers of the Week
Week 1:
East:
Pitcher of the Week: Luc Rising, Batavia (Rochester Institute of Technology)
Player: Grant Moore, Niagara Falls (Mount Vernon Nazarene University)
West:
Pitcher of the Week: Derek Duval, Amsterdam (College of Charleston)
Player of the Week: Brandon McCraine, Amsterdam (Auburn University)
Week 2:
East:
Pitcher of the Week: Christian Pencek, Jamestown (Lincoln Memorial University)
Player: Justin Bremner, Jamestown (Canisius University)
West:
Pitcher of the Week: Houston Tomlinson, Boonville (Texas A&M)
Player of the Week: Jayden Harriel, Amsterdam (Florida Atlantic University)
Week 3:
East:
Pitcher of the Week: Dillon Harding, Glens Falls (UMass Dartmouth)
Player of the Week: Lewis Rodriguez, Saugerties (Marist University)
West:
Pitcher of the Week: Matt McGeorge, Auburn (Mercyhurst University)
Player of the Week: Aidan Grabowski, Elmira (Tiffin University)
Week 4:
East:
Pitcher of the Week: Drew Turner, Boonville (University of Pittsburgh)
Co-Players of the Week: Tyler Jones, Mohawk Valley (George Washington University) & Jamie Zee, Saugerties (Notre Dame)
West:
Pitcher of the Week: Christian Pencek, Jamestown (University of West Florida)
Player of the Week: Noah Brooks, Newark (Siena College)