SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – On the heels of a 3-0 weekend at the Jayhawk Classic, Kevin Medrano and Nick Petree were tabbed State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the league office Monday. Additionally, Petree became the second Missouri State pitcher to be selected by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper as one of its national players of the week after helping the Bears to their eighth shutout of 2012 to match a team single-season record.
Petree joined teammate Pierce Johnson (March 26) on CBN’s distinguished list of national award winners and became the first Valley player to win three weekly honors this season after earning the same distinction March 19 and April 30. The Clinton, Mo., native struck out a career-high 12 batters over eight scoreless innings of the Bears’ 7-0 victory over Air Force Friday, limiting the Falcons to three hits in pushing his personal scoreless streak to 30.0 consecutive innings to eclipse a Missouri State single-season record. Petree (9-2), who was named the tournament's most-outstanding pitcher, won for the ninth time in 11 starts and surpassed the previous MSU single-season scoreless innings record of 29 1/3 innings set by Greg Reed in 1988. He also stretched his string of consecutive innings without allowing an earned run to 64 2/3 straight frames dating back to a March 2 start at Northwestern State.
Medrano also became a multiple MVC Player of the Week honoree Monday after going 7-for-15 (.467) with six RBIs in helping the Bears capture the tournament title in Lawrence. The senior second baseman was named the Jayhawk Classic’s most-outstanding player after recording a hit in each of the Bears’ three games over the weekend, including back-to-back three-hit efforts against Air Force. A Lee’s Summit, Mo., product, Medrano went 3-for-5 with a season-high four RBIs in Friday’s 7-0 victory, then came back with a 3-for-4, 2-RBI game Saturday as part of an 11-3 MSU win. Medrano, who earned his first MVC Player of the Week award on April 2, also played a pivotal role in the Bears’ 6-3 win over host Kansas on Sunday, starting Missouri State’s game-clinching, three-run rally in the 11th inning with a one-out single that moved him into a tie with Bill Mueller for second on the MSU career hits list.
Missouri State (34-14, 10-4 MVC) will shoot for its fifth-straight victory Wednesday (May 9) with a 6 p.m. game against Missouri at Simmons Field in Columbia.
MSU Sports Information - Eric Doennig
