News

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio - Tim Martini and Jon Barchus, two members of the Mount Vernon Nazarene University baseball team, swept the American Mideast Conference and NAIA Region IX Player and Pitcher of the Week honors for the week of April 21-27.

Tim Martini	Jon Barchus

Martini, a sophomore outfielder from Galena, Ohio, batted .481 for the week as the Cougars went 6-2 and moved into first place in the AMC North Division with a 5-1 mark against division opponents. The former Olentangy High School standout was 13-for-27 for the week with five doubles, one home run, six RBI, and 10 runs scored. Martini had five multi-hit games during the week, and he also had two outfield assists.

For the season, Martini leads MVNU with a .398 batting average, 51 hits, 33 runs scored, and 12 doubles. He also has three home runs and 30 RBI and is tied for the team lead with five stolen bases. He has committed just one error in 59 chances in the outfield.

Barchus, a junior right-handed pitcher from Crestline, Ohio, was named the Pitcher of the Week for the third time in six weeks as he went 2-0 on the mound with one save and a 2.40 earned run average. In 15 innings of work, the former Mansfield Christian School star struck out 24 batters and issued just one walk.  He was also selected as the National Christian College Athletic Association Player of the Week.

In a 2-1 victory over Geneva (Pa.) College, Barchus allowed just three hits, one walk, and one earned run while striking out a career-high 12 batters. He picked up his first save of the season and the school-record 13th of his career as he worked the final inning of a 3-1 win at Saint Vincent (Pa.) College and recorded two strikeouts. Then, he closed out the week by scattering seven hits and four runs over seven innings with 10 strikeouts in a 6-4 win at Geneva.

On the season, Barchus is now 9-0 with a 2.41 ERA. In 52 1/3 innings, he has struck out a team-high 73 batters and issued just 14 walks. Opposing batters are hitting just .204 against him.

MVNU is currently 23-15 overall and in first place in the AMC North with a 12-6 record. The Cougars will travel to Ohio Wesleyan University for a non-conference nine-inning game on Thursday at 3:30 p.m. before closing out the regular season with a division doubleheader against second-place Point Park (Pa.) College on Saturday at Cougar Field at 1:00 p.m.