SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Samford second baseman Brooks Carlson and ETSU right-hander Landon Knack have been named the Southern Conference player and pitcher of the week, respectively, for all games Feb. 14-16. The selections are made by the league office.
 
In Samford’s season-opening series against UNC Asheville, Carlson hit .778, going 7-for-9 at the dish with a double and a home run, producing eight RBIs as the Bulldogs started the season 3-0. The junior from Mobile, Alabama, drew four walks over the weekend, including three in Sunday’s finale, with two of those being intentional walks. His slugging percentage for the weekend was 1.222 while his on-base percentage was .857.  

The weekly award is the third of Carlson’s career.

Samford (3-0) will travel to Starkville, Mississippi, on Tuesday to take on Mississippi State (3-0) at 4 p.m. CT.

ETSU’s Knack was dominant on the mound in the season-opening win over Toledo on Feb. 14. The senior from Johnson City, Tennessee, tied his career high with 11 strikeouts over just five innings of work. Of the 15 total outs recorded by Knack, 11 came via strikeout with two batters struck out looking. Knack showed impressive accuracy with just one walk and a strike percentage of 74 percent, with 57 of his 77 total pitches called strikes. His two allowed hits are the fewest for Knack in his two-year career at ETSU.

The weekly award is the first of Knack’s career.

ETSU (3-0) will head up to Blacksburg, Virginia, for a road contest with Virginia Tech on Tuesday at 4 p.m.

Also nominated for player of the week: Ryan McCarthy (The Citadel), Cade Gilbert (ETSU), Colby Thomas (Mercer), Caleb Webster (UNCG), Will Knight (VMI), Daylan Nanny (Western Carolina) and Lawson Hill (Wofford).

Also nominated for pitcher of the week: Shane Connolly (The Citadel), Jackson Kelley (Mercer), Samuel Strickland (Samford), Adam Jewell (VMI), Zebby Matthews (Western Carolina) and Jake Hershman (Wofford).

2020 SoCon Players of the Week
Feb. 17             Brooks Carlson, Samford

2020 SoCon Pitchers of the Week
Feb. 17             Landon Knack, ETSU