DALLAS (NCBWA) – The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association released its National Player of the Week awards for the period ending March 20, today. South Carolina sophomore catcher John Jones was named National Hitter of the Week, while Houston sophomore left-hander Seth Romero was named National Pitcher of the Week. The NCBWA Board reviews candidates from each Division I Conference each week and names winners each Tuesday throughout the season.

Jones hit .409 to help the Gamecocks to five victories this past week including a series sweep against No. 13 Arkansas. The Orlando, Florida native hit .500 (7-for-14) vs. Arkansas with a pair of game-winning home runs. He opened the series going 3-for-5 with a pair of runs scored and a RBI in the 10-6 win. He followed that up with a two-run homer to break a 2-2 tie in the 6-2 victory over Arkansas on Saturday. Jones capped the weekend off by going 3-for-5 with a double and a game-winning three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning that lifted Carolina to an 8-6 victory vs. the Razorbacks. Jones’ five RBI in Sunday’s contest was a career-high as well.

Jones leads the SEC in batting average (.422) and is tied for the league lead with six home runs and 57 total bases. He ranks third in RBIs (31), third in on-base percentage (.515), fourth in slugging percentage (.687).

Romero dominated in his start against Grand Canyon, helping the Cougars to a sweep of the three-game series. The West Columbia, Texas native allowed one hit and one unearned run in a complete-game victory, finishing with two walks and 13 strikeouts — the most by an American Athletic Conference pitcher in a game this season. He did not allow a baserunner after the fourth inning, leading the way for Houston to take a 3-1 victory. Romero has a 3-0 record and a 0.78 earned-run average in 23.0 innings pitched this season.

Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. For more information about the NCBWA, visit the association's official Web site, www.ncbwa.com.

For more information on the NCBWA Division I National Players of the Week, contact NCBWA Assistant Executive Director Mike Montoro at West Virginia University at 304-293-2821.

2016 NCBWA Division I Players of the Week:
• Feb. 21: Jeren Kendall, Vanderbilt (Hitter); Zach Muckenhirn, North Dakota (Pitcher)
• Feb. 28: Brandon Gutzler, Murray State (Hitter); Logan Shore, Florida (Pitcher)
• March 6: Darik Hall, Dallas Baptist (Hitter); Lucas Humpal, Texas State (Pitcher)
• March 13: Joe Cronin, Boston College (Hitter); Jesse Scholtens, Wright State (Pitcher)
• March 20: John Jones, South Carolina (Hitter); Seth Romero, Houston (Pitcher)
• March 27: Tyler Chadwick, Coastal Carolina (Hitter); Ryan Hingst, Arizona State (Pitcher)
• April 5: Tanner Kirwer, Niagara (Hitter); Andrew Wantz, UNCG (Pitcher)
• April 12: Michael Davis, Texas Tech (Hitter); Zac Gallen, North Carolina (Pitcher)
• April 19: Greg Guers, Penn State (Hitter); Shane McCarthy, Seton Hall (Pitcher)
• April 26: Logan Gray, Austin Peay (Hitter); Cody Sedlock, Illinois (Pitcher)
• May 3: J.B Woodman, Ole Miss (Hitter); Chad Donato, West Virginia (Pitcher)
• May 10: Brandon Soat, IPFW (Hitter); Kyle Simonds, Texas A&M (Pitcher)
• May 17: Blake Benefield, Middle Tennessee (Hitter); Eric Lauer, Kent State (Pitcher)
• May 24: Dillon Cooper, Alabama State (Hitter); Sam Perez, Missouri State (Pitcher)

2016 NCBWA Division I Players of the Month:
• February: Taylor Braley, Southern Miss (Hitter); Brendon McKay, Lousiville (Pitcher)
• March: Seth Beer, Clemson (Hitter); Seth Romero, Houston and Clarke Schmidt, South Carolina (Pitcher)
• April: Hunter Melton, Texas A&M (Hitter); Will Hibbs, Lamar (Pitcher)
• May: Daniel Johnson, New Mexico State (Hitter); Dakota Hudson, Mississippi State (Pitcher)