DALLAS (NCBWA) – The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) released its National Player of the Week awards for the period ending April 11. Texas redshirt sophomore designated hitter Ivan Melendez was named National Hitter of the Week, while Georgia sophomore right-handed pitcher Jonathan Cannon 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.

Melendez homered in all five games played last week, batting .556 (10-of-18) with two doubles, six total homers and 16 RBIs. The Longhorn DH homered twice in the series finale against K-State to complete the sweep. Behind Melendez, Texas outscored opponents, 60-14 in a perfect 5-0 week. The sophomore has homered in six-straight games dating back to last Saturday's series finale at Kansas.

Cannon tossed a career-high seven shutout innings with nine strikeouts and no walks in a 9-1 series-clinching win over the Commodores Saturday. The Alpharetta, Georgia, native limited the SEC's top-ranked hitting team, which was second in the nation in slugging percentage, to just five singles. Twice, Vanderbilt managed to put two men on to start an inning, and Cannon and the Bulldogs held them in check. In the fifth inning, the Commodores had runners at second and third with one out, and Cannon came back with strikeouts of the No. 1 and 2 hitters in their lineup.

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, 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.

2021 NCBWA Division I Players of the Week:
• Week ending Feb. 22: Blayne Jones, Dallas Baptist (Hitter); Jordan Wicks, Kansas State (Pitcher)
• Week ending Feb. 28: Dominic Keegan, Vanderbilt (Hitter); Will Dion, McNeese State (Pitcher)
• Week ending March 7: Kenyon Yovan, Oregon (Hitter); Ty Madden, Texas (Pitcher)
• Week ending March 14: Cade Doughty, LSU (Hitter); Jarrett Whorff, Louisiana Tech (Pitcher)
• Week ending March 21: Robby Martin, Florida State (Hitter); Jack Leiter, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
• Week ending March 28: Caden Grice, Clemson (Hitter); Chayce McDermott, Ball State (Pitcher)
• Week ending April 4: Adrian Del Castillo, Miami (Hitter); Seth Lonsway, Ohio State (Pitcher)
• Week ending April 11: Ivan Melendez, Texas (Hitter); Jonathan Cannon, Georgia (Pitcher)
• Week ending April 18: Aaron Beck, Indiana State (Hitter); Alek Jacob, Gonzaga (Pitcher)
• Week ending April 25: T.J. Collett, Kentucky (Hitter); Landen Bourassa, San Francisco (Pitcher)
• Week ending May 2: Dustin Demeter, Hawaii (Hitter); Tyler Burnham, Seton Hall (Pitcher)
• Week ending May 9: Will Frizzell, Texas A&M (Hitter); Justin Campbell, Oklahoma State (Pitcher)
• Week ending May 16: Ethan Long, Arizona State (Hitter); Andrew Abbott, Virginia (Pitcher)
• Week ending May 23: Cody Littlejohn, Tennessee Tech (Hitter); Cooper Hjerpe, Oregon State (Pitcher)

2021 NCBWA Division I Players of the Month:
• February: Wes Clarke, South Carolina (Player); Carson Whisenhunt, East Carolina (Pitcher)
• March: Tim Elko, Ole Miss (Player); Jack Leiter, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
• April: Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Oklahoma State (Player); Kevin Kopps, Arkansas (Pitcher)
• May: Jack Rogers, Sam Houston (Player); Kevin Kopps, Arkansas (Pitcher)