Cal Poly freshman Brian Mundell and UC Irvine junior Andrew Thurman captured Big West Baseball Field Player and Pitcher of the Week honors as primary contributors to successful efforts by both teams.

Mundell Slugs Pair Of Game-Winning Home Runs

Freshman Brian Mundell (Valencia, Calif./Valencia HS) delivered two game-winning blasts for Cal Poly that earned him Big West Baseball Field Player of the Week honors.

The designated hitter unloaded a walk-off shot in the 10th inning of Cal Poly's 6-5 win over San Jose State Tuesday.  He returned on Thursday in a 6-3 victory against No. 17 Notre Dame, hammering a three-run shot to snap a 3-3 tie in the third inning and produce the game-winning runs.

Although the Mustangs dropped the final two games of the series to the Fighting Irish, Mundell continued his productivity.  He went 2-for-4 with a double in Friday's 1-0 loss, and closed out the series with three hits in four at-bats with a double and run scored in Saturday's 6-4 setback.

For the week, Mundell hit .500 (8-for-16) with two doubles, two home runs, four runs scored and four RBI as the Mustangs posted a 2-2 record.

Mundell has hit five home runs this season, all in the last two weeks, and is No. 4 on Cal Poly's chart for home runs by a freshman in the school's 19-year Division I history.  He is currently batting .345 and has hit safely in seven of the last eight games.

Others nominated:  Carlos Lopez (Cal State Fullerton); Jeff McNeil (Long Beach State); Paul Politi (UC Davis); Taylor Sparks (UC Irvine); Robbie Nesovic (UC Santa Barbara)


Thurman Shuts Down Nebraska In Complete Game Effort

UC Irvine junior Andrew Thurman (Orange, Calif./Orange Lutheran HS) established a career-high in strikeouts and dealt his fifth career complete game to claim the Big West Baseball Pitcher of the Week award.

The 6-3 right hander controlled the Husker offense throughout as he scattered five hits and allowed just one walk in his nine innings.  Thurman also fanned a career-best 11 batters during the 108-pitch outing.

Thurman wiggled out of a first and third, one-out jam in the fourth and induced a come-backer to start a game-ending double play in the ninth to secure UCI's 2-1 victory in the series opener.

Others nominated:  Joey Wagman (Cal Poly); Justin Garza (Cal State Fullerton); Shane Carle (Long Beach State); Trevor Frank (UC Riverside); Austin Pettibone (UC Santa Barbara); Matt Cooper (Hawaii)