COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech baseball team has had its share of the spotlight this season – tying the program record for consecutive wins, holding the nation's longest winning streak of 14 games, and getting off to the best start in program history.
On Monday, the spotlight found senior Tristan Archer.
The Golden Eagles added another achievement to that list as Archer was named adidas® Ohio Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week. It has been quite the season for the righty, who earned the honor just four days after pitching his first complete game shutout in a 1-0 win over SIU Edwardsville Thursday evening. Archer struck out eight batters while allowing just four hits and two walks in a pitcher's duel against SIUE ace Travis Felax.
The award comes as no surprise as Archer has been on a tear since earning a loss in the season opener against Illinois. The senior has run off five wins in six starts since then, lowering his ERA to a career-best 2.27. The righty is off to the best start of his career, ranking first in the OVC in strikeouts (48), second in innings pitched (47.2), and tied for second in wins (five). He has walked just nine batters on the year, good for a 5.33 strikeout/walk ratio which ranks first in the record books for a single season.
A crucial facet to Tech's 14-game winning streak, Archer has been striking out opponents at a career-high pace. He recorded his 200th career K at Eastern Kentucky, making him just the second Golden Eagle to ever record 200 strikeouts in a career. He is also currently on pace for the first 100-strikeout season since 1997 when Mark Maberry set down 108 batters on strikes.
This marks the fourth time that Archer has earned OVC Pitcher of the week honors in his career. The righty grabbed his first POW award as a sophomore, followed up by two awards during his junior campaign.
Here's a look at the rest of the awards in the OVC this week:
Player of the Week
Reed Harper, SS • Sr., 6-3, 200 • Clarksville, Tenn. • Austin Peay
Harper hit .333 (5-for-15) with two runs scored, a home run, seven RBI, two stolen bases, a .533 slugging percentage and a .444 on-base percentage in four games last week. He had a two-run single in the team's loss at nationally-ranked Mississippi State to begin the week. After being held hitless in the team's opener with Murray State (although he did have two stolen bases in the Govs win), the senior responded with a three-run home run that provided the game-winning runs in Friday's 10-3 win. He finished the series by reaching base in all five plate appearances, going 3-for-3 with a walk, a hit by pitch and a two-run single.
Others Nominated: Josh Davis, Belmont; Caleb Howell, Eastern Illinois; Paschal Patrongolo, Jacksonville State; Cole Bieser, Southeast Missouri; Daniel Miles, Tennessee Tech; Wade Collins, UT Martin.
Pitcher of the Week
Others Nominated: Casey Delgado, Austin Peay; Josh Davis, Belmont; Joe Greenfield, Eastern Illinois; Travis Stout, Jacksonville State; Luke Shearrow, Southeast Missouri.
