RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Southern Arkansas’ Jackson McCurdy and Ouachita Baptist’s Davis Ward claimed the first Great American Conference baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week awards of 2014, respectively, the conference office announced on Monday.
 
GAC BASEBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jackson McCurdy, Southern Arkansas, OF, Sr., White Oak, Texas
McCurdy opened the season in grand fashion as he hit for the cycle in the No. 13 Muleriders’ 21-7 season-opening victory against No. 30 Augustana College. He drove in seven RBI and scored twice in the win. In the second game of the doubleheader, he added a two-run double in a 9-5 win.
 
GAC BASEBALL PITCHER OF THE WEEK – Davis Ward, Ouachita Baptist, RHP, Sr., Little Rock, Ark.
Ward, the 2013 GAC Pitcher of the Year outdueled the Hilltoppers’ Brannon Easterling, the 2013 College Baseball Lineup Division II Josh Willingham Most Valuable Player, in a 1-0 Tiger victory. He recorded his GAC-leading 16th career complete game and fifth all-time shutout. He held the second-ranked St. Edward’s squad to three hits and he registered five strikeouts.
 
NOTABLE PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINEES                                                                    

• Austin Braddock, DH, Jr., Arkansas-Monticello (Tallied 3-hit games in the opening two games of Houston Winter Invitational)
• Jonathan Freemyer, OF, Sr., Northwestern Oklahoma State (Hit .455 in the Rangers’ sweep of Oklahoma Panhandle State)
• Austin Samulowitz, OF, Sr., Southern Nazarene (Recorded two multi-hit games against Mid-America Christian)

 
NOTABLE PITCHER OF THE WEEK NOMINEES                                                                  

• Joe Coto, RHP, Sr., Northwestern Oklahoma State (Threw 6.0 shutout innings with 7 strikeouts vs Oklahoma Panhandle State)
• Jonathan Johnson, RHP, Sr., Southwestern Oklahoma State (Limited UT-Permian to no runs and three hits over 7.0 innings)
• Thomas Solowynksy, LHP, So., Southern Nazarene (Earned first of SNU career; struck out 7 against Mid-America Christian)