DALLAS (NCBWA) – The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association released its first weekly NCAA Division II National Players of the Week awards of the 2015 season for the week ending on Feb. 15. Shippensburg sophomore catcher Jake Kennedy is the National Hitter of the Week while Gannon's junior righty Aaron Cox is the National Pitcher of the Week.

Kennedy (Thorndale, Pa.) hit four home runs in the opening weekend at Belmont Abbey. In a Sunday nine-inning game he was 2-for-3 with two home runs, three RBIs, three runs and two walks. In that three-game series, all four of Kennedy's hits were home runs, and he had nine RBIs through the first three games. In a Week 2 doubleheader at Barton he was the only Raider with four hits on the day; he reached base six times, smacked his fifth home run of the season, hit his first career triple, scored three runs and stole two bases. With those stolen bases, he stole as many bases in one day as he had in his entire career (38 games) entering Saturday. Kennedy had two home runs in 35 games last year; he has five in five games this year. He had nine walks in 35 games last year; he has six walks in five games this year.

Cox (Dorchester, N.J.) struck out 10 hitters and walked none during his season debut on the mound, tossing a no-hitter during a 4-0 victory at Limestone (S.C.). The junior faced one batter above the minimum, hitting the second batter of the 5th inning. Cox's no-hitter was the first of his collegiate career and fifth in the history of the Gannon baseball program.  

Division II Regional Players of the Week:
• Atlantic: Jake Kennedy, Shippensburg (Hitter); Aaron Cox, Gannon (Pitcher)
• Central: Nathan Prindle, Lindenwood (Hitter); Cam McKay, East Central (Pitcher)
• East: No nominations
• Midwest: No nominations
• South: Jake Bush, University of West Alabama (Hitter); Brandon Nagem, University of West Florida (Pitcher)
• South Central: Matthew Chavez, New Mexico Highlands (Hitter); Steve Naemark, Angelo State (Pitcher)
• Southeast: Dalton Knight, UNC Pembroke (Hitter); Danny Brown, Flagler (Pitcher)
• West: No nominations

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.

2015 NCBWA Division II Players of the Week:
• Feb. 15: Jake Kennedy, Shippensburg (Hitter); Aaron Cox, Gannon (Pitcher)
• Feb. 22: Luke Reinschmidt, Montana State-Billings (Hitter); Steve Naemark, Angelo State (Pitcher)
• March 8: Jordan Brower, Azusa Pacific (Hitter); Mike Lundin, Franklin Pierce (Pitcher)
• March 15: Will Albertson, Catawba (Hitter); Landon Simpson, Southern Arkansas (Pitcher)
• March 22: Chris Miller, Seton Hill (Hitter); Ryan Luna, Sonoma State (Pitcher)
• March 29: Austin Wallingford, Colorado Mesa (Hitter); Sean Goostree, Missouri Southern (Pitcher)
• April 5: Will Albertson, Catawba (Hitter); John Conquy, Dixie State (Pitcher)
• April 12: Ryan Uhl, Indiana, Pa. (Hitter); Jordan Tackett, Indianapolis (Pitcher)
• April 19: Mike Montville, Southern New Hampshire (Hitter); Mitchell Stalsberg, Winona State (Pitcher)
• April 26: Ryan Uhl, Indiana, Pa. (Hitter); Randy Dobnak, Alderson Broaddus (Pitcher)
• May 3: Zak DeCamp, Lake Erie (Hitter); Kyle Wilson, Missouri-St. Louis (Pitcher)