ACU’s Trevino, UNO’s Brandon Mitchell earns Southland Weekly Baseball Honors

Trevino named Hitter of the Week; Mitchell tabbed Pitcher of the Week

FRISCO, Texas – Abilene Christian catcher Luis Trevino is the Southland Conference Hitter of the Week and New Orleans hurler Brandon Mitchell is the Pitcher of the Week, the league announced Monday. Southland Conference Players of the Week are presented by MidSouth Bank.

Trevino hit .643 (9-for-16) from the plate, reaching base at a .700 clip and slugging 1.571 over four games last week. He set a Division I era school record with three home runs in a 7-3 win over New Orleans on Saturday. The senior catcher and designated hitter drove in six runs, scored six on his own and drew five walks.

The Wildcats take on Central Arkansas in a three-game weekend series, beginning at 6 p.m. CT on Friday in Conway, Ark. With a sweep, ACU would match its program record for Southland Conference wins after posting 13 in 2015.

Mitchell posted career-high numbers in innings pitched (8.0) and strikeouts (10) in the series opener against ACU last Friday. His eight innings tied the most by a Privateers starter this season and his 10 strikeouts marked the second-most by a UNO hurler.

The Privateers wrap up a seven-game homestand against Southern at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday before hosting Houston Baptist for a three-game weekend slate, beginning with a 6:30 p.m. first pitch on Friday.

Hitter of the Week – Luis Trevino, Abilene Christian – Senior – Catcher – Mission, Texas
Trevino started the week with a 2-for-3 performance against TCU with a run driven in and a run scored. He followed it up with another two-hit outing in the series opener against UNO, homering off Mitchell for ACU’s first run of the ballgame.

In his first two at-bats of Saturday’s contest, Trevino rounded the bases and added a third for good measure in the seventh to finish 4-for-4. The Mission, Texas, native led off the sixth inning with a base knock and scored on a sac fly for the eventual gamewinning run. Pitchers’ reluctancy to face the slugger showed in the series finale as Trevino drew four free passes, including three intentional walks.

Honorable Mention: Colton Cowser, Sam Houston State; Shea Gutierrez, Incarnate Word; Salo Iza, New Orleans; Clayton Rasbeary, McNeese; Chase Talbot, Houston Baptist.

Pitcher of the Week – Brandon Mitchell, New Orleans – Freshman – Pitcher – Houston, Texas
Mitchell scattered five hits and punched out seven Wildcats over five scoreless innings before ACU got on the board with a Trevino home run. The Houston, Texas, native responded by retiring six-straight batters and finished his day with just one walk, opposite of 10 strikeouts.

Honorable Mention: Jared Biddy, Southeastern Louisiana; Jason Blanchard, Lamar; Zach Carter, Houston Baptist; Rhett Deaton, McNeese; David Hodo, Northwestern State.

Southland weekly award winners are nominated and voted upon by each school’s sports information director. Voting for one’s own athlete is not permitted. To earn honorable mention, a student-athlete must appear on 25 percent of ballots.