SPARTANBURG, S.C. – VMI catcher Peyton Maddox and Wofford right-hander Matthew Milburn have been named the Southern Conference player and pitcher of the week, respectively, for all games March 7-13. The selections are made by the league office.
VMI’s Maddox hit .688 and slugged a robust 1.563 in four contests last week, hitting four home runs and two doubles among his 11 hits as the Keydets went 3-1. Maddox had three multiple-hit outings, driving in nine runs and scoring seven en route to compiling a .722 on-base percentage.
The sophomore from Amherst, Va., who had hit just two homers in his career prior to last week, opened his week with a 3-for-5 showing against James Madison in which he hit a home run and a double and scored twice.
Maddox then feasted on UMES in the Keydets’ sweep of the Hawks, going 4-for-4 with five RBIs, three runs scored and the first two-homer game of his career in VMI’s series-opening 23-2 win Friday. He followed that up with a hit, a walk and a stolen base Saturday before closing his week with a 3-for-4 game in which he had a homer and a double and drove in three runs.
Maddox was also named one of Collegiate Baseball’s Louisville Slugger National Players of the Week for his efforts.
VMI (10-7) hosts VCU and George Mason in midweek games before welcoming Rider for a three-game weekend set to cap a 13-game homestand. The Keydets will be meeting George Mason for the first time since 2002.
Also nominated: Bret Hines (The Citadel), Trey York (ETSU), Kyle Lewis (Mercer), L.J. Kalawaia (UNCG), Hunter Swilling (Samford), Brett Pope (Western Carolina) and Derek Hirsch (Wofford).
Wofford’s Milburn, the SoCon’s Preseason Pitcher of the Year, threw his second career nine-inning complete game Saturday, allowing just one earned run on seven hits in picking up a 5-1 win over Cornell in the first game of a doubleheader.
The senior from Dallas, Texas, mowed down the Big Red to the tune of 10 strikeouts and no walks. He carried a shutout into the ninth inning before allowing a solo home run to lead off the top of the frame.
His 10 Ks matched the career high he set in a season-opening win over No. 25 Kentucky. After recording just two strikeouts in the first five innings, Milburn struck out eight batters in the final four, including three straight in the seventh after he issued a pair singles to lead off the inning. Milburn leads the league with 35 strikeouts so far this season.
Cornell’s solo homer was the only extra-base hit Milburn allowed on the day.
Wofford (11-6) heads to Clinton, S.C., for a Wednesday contest at Presbyterian before starting a three-game weekend set with Gardner-Webb. The Runnin’ Bulldogs will host the Terriers in Boiling Springs, N.C., on Friday and Sunday, sandwiched around a game at Wofford’s Russell C. King Field on Saturday.
Also nominated: Lee Haeberle (ETSU), Conrad Broom (Mercer), Hunter Smith (UNCG), Parker Curry (Samford), Josh Winder (VMI) and Bryan Sammons (Western Carolina).
2016 SoCon Players of the Week
Feb. 22 Heath Quinn, Samford
Feb. 29 Heath Quinn, Samford
March 7 Kyle Lewis, Mercer
March 14 Peyton Maddox, VMI
2016 SoCon Pitchers of the Week
Feb. 22 JP Sears, The Citadel
Feb. 29 Ryan Askew, Mercer
March 7 Josh Winder, VMI
March 14 Matthew Milburn, Wofford
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