March 29, 2007
For Immediate Release
Contact: Blair Cash
503-554-2926
Wartburg's Shandri, Ohio Wesleyan's Jones honored by association
NCBWA NAMES DIVISION III
NATIONAL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

DALLAS (NCBWA) – First baseman Jake Shandri of Wartburg College is a repeat winner for NCAA Division III Hitter of the Week, and no-hit hurler Xander Jones of Ohio Wesleyan University has been named Pitcher of the Week for March 19-25, as chosen by representatives of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

Shandri, a senior from Urbandale, Iowa, hit .684 (13-for-19) with four doubles, four home runs, 10 RBI and nine runs scored in five games during the week. He had a 1.526 slugging percentage and went 10-for-14 in a three-game sweep of Dubuque . In the first game against the Spartans, he was 3-for-6 with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored in the Knights’ 4-3 win. In the second game of the series, the opener of a doubleheader won by Wartburg (12-6), he was 4-for-4 with three home runs, a double, seven RBI and four runs scored. In the nightcap, a 15-11 win, he was 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Earlier in the week, he went 3-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored as Wartburg was swept by St. Olaf (7-2, 5-4) in the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minn. Shandri, the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Week, also won national honors Feb. 26-Mar. 4, the first honoree of the season.

Jones, a junior right-hander from Pomfret, Conn., fired a no-hitter to defeat Wittenberg 2-0, helping Ohio Wesleyan complete a sweep of a North Coast Athletic Conference West Division doubleheader on Sunday. Jones' no-hitter was the 10th in Ohio Wesleyan history and the first since Scott Oberschlake no-hit Defiance in the opener of a doubleheader on March 23, 1994. Jones allowed one baserunner in the game, that coming on a leadoff walk in the second inning, and retired the last 18 batters he faced. He struck out six and walked one while facing only one batter over the minimum. He was the North Coast Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week.

Honorable mention hitters: Tom Rhein (Elmhurst) - .500 (11-22), 5 home runs, 8 runs, 17 RBI, 1.182 slugging pct.; Mitch Kuczek (Transylvania) - .619 (13-21), 3 doubles, 2 triples, 11 runs, 10 RBI, 5 steals, .952 slugging pct.; Josh Schultheis (St. Olaf) - .625 (10-16), 1 double, 1 home run, 5 runs, 4 RBI, .875 slugging pct.; Nick Fiorelli (Washington & Jefferson) - .667 (12-18), 1 double, 1 home run, 9 runs, 3 RBI, 2 steals, .889 slugging pct.; Cody Goodell (Olivet) - .4571(8-14), 2 doubles, 1 home run, 4 RBI, .929 slugging pct.; Neal Allar (Amherst) - .482 (14-29), 2 doubles, 1 triple, 3 home runs, 11 runs, 18 RBI, .931 slugging pct.; Steve Bralver (Emory) - .529 (9-17), 5 doubles, 1 triple, 6 runs, 12 RBI, 1.000 slugging pct.

Honorable mention pitchers: Jake Gasser (St. Norbert) - 2-0, 0.00 ERA, 14.0 ip, 2 cg, 5 hits, 6 strikeouts, no-hitter vs. Worcester State; Riley Bosch (St. Thomas MN) - 2-0, 0.51 ERA, 15.1 ip, 14 hits, 9 strikeouts; Fabian Gomez (Rockford) - 2-0, 0.00 ERA, 16.0 ip, 2 cg, 2 hits, 22 strikeouts; Will Chermak (Austin) - 1-0, 1.00 ERA, 9.0 ip, 6 hits, 14 strikeouts; Eric Smolin (Western New England) - 1-0, 1.00 ERA, 9.0 ip, 6 hits, 2 strikeouts; Jason Tomlinson (Muskingum) - 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 9.0 ip, 3 hits, 10 strikeouts.

Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. Members receive a membership card, directory, newsletter updates and official votes in the Howser Award Player of the Year, Regional Player of the Year and NCBWA All-America voting. The NCBWA also sponsors preseason All-America awards, publication and writing contests.

2007 NCBWA Division III Players of the Week:
March 8: Jake Shandri, Wartburg (Hitter); Bill Dictus, Edgewood (Pitcher)
March 15: Pete Moore, Moravian (Hitter); Lee Boyse, Coe (Pitcher)
March 22: Rob Sumner, New Jersey City (Hitter); Jake Dennstedt, SUNY-Brockport (Pitcher)
March 29: Jake Shandri, Wartburg (Hitter); Xander Jones, Ohio Wesleyan (Pitcher)
April 5: Richard Hurd, Rhodes; Don Reinertsen, William Paterson; Kyle Sherman, Ohio Wesleyan (Hitter); Kyle Wewe, Thomas More (Pitcher)
April 12: Josh Cardoso, Rhode Island College (Hitter); Bob Buskett, College of New Jersey (Pitcher)
April 19: Adam Evanoff, Wisconsin-Stevens Point (Hitter); Sam Heaps, Elizabethtown College (Pitcher)
April 26: Jimmy Fernandez, Allegheny (Hitter); Tim Kiely, Trinity (Pitcher)
May 3: Tim Rowe, Rockford College (Hitter); Peter Reyes, SUNY-Old Westbury (Pitcher)
May 10: Tommy Schmidt, Lawrence (Hitter); Fabian Gomez, Rockford College (Pitcher)