 |
 |
|
|
Brian Sheets and Mark Coulter, two members of the Mount Vernon Nazarene College baseball team, were selected as the National Christian College Athletic Association Player and Pitcher of the Week respectively for the week of May 8-14.
Sheets, a senior third baseman from Vermilion, Ohio, batted .550 in four games at the NAIA Region IX Tournament as the fourth-seeded Cougars went 3-1 and advanced to the championship game. In 20 at bats, the former Vermilion High School star recorded 11 hits, one double, six runs scored, and seven runs batted in. He also stole one base in one attempt and had a .583 on-base percentage.
In the first game of the tournament, Sheets went 2-for-5 with one run scored and one RBI against third-seeded Ohio Dominican College as MVNC downed the Panthers 5-4 in 10 innings. In the second game, he went 3-for-5 with two RBI and one run scored in a 10-8 victory over second-seeded Shawnee State University in 11 innings.
Sheets went 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored in the team's third game as the Cougars lost 15-12 to Shawnee State. Then, he had his best game of the season with a 4-for-6 performance against Ohio Dominican that included a double, a stolen base, two RBI, and two runs scored. After trailing 9-1, MVNC rallied for a 12-11 victory in 11 innings on Sheets' run-scoring double with two outs in the bottom of the eleventh.
Coulter, a sophomore left-handed pitcher from Lewistown, Pennsylvania, made three appearances for the Cougars in the NAIA Region IX Tournament and earned a victory in each game. For the week, the former Lewistown Area High School standout was 3-0 with a 2.19 earned run average. In 12 1/3 innings of work, Coulter struck out three batters and issued one walk while opponents hit just .229 against him.
In MVNC's 5-4 win over Ohio Dominican, Coulter worked the tenth inning and allowed three hits and a run before the Cougars scored twice in the bottom of the inning to win the game. Coulter also went 1-for-1 at the plate with his RBI-single tying the game in the bottom of the tenth inning.
In MVNC's 10-8 victory over Shawnee State, Coulter worked the final two and 2/3 innings and gave up just one hit with one strikeout. He also went 1-for-1 at the plate after entering the game.
Coulter closed out the week by tossing eight and 2/3 innings of relief as the Cougars rallied from a 9-1 deficit to defeat Ohio Dominican 12-11 in 11 innings. He scattered seven hits, one walk, and three runs while striking out two batters.
MVNC finished its season with a 29-20 overall record. The Cougars also advanced to the championship game of the NAIA Region IX Tournament and finished as the runner-up after entering the tournament as the fourth seed.
