Cal Poly’s Jimmy Allen and Long Beach State’s Nick Rossetta turned in outstanding efforts to earn selections as the Big West Baseball Field Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively.
Allen’s Power Display Helps Mustangs To First Big West Title
Senior Jimmy Allen’s (Vista, Calif./Rancho Buena Vista HS) three home runs earned him Big West Baseball Field Player of the Week honors for the second time this season as he helped Cal Poly clinch its first Big West championship in program history.
Allen hit .429 (6-for-14) with seven runs scored as the Mustangs swept Cal State Northridge and secured the outright Big West title, its first in 18 years as a member of the conference. The third baseman doubled in the series in addition to his three round-trippers, and drove in five runs to help Cal Poly extend its winning streak to six straight.
Entering the weekend series with two home runs, Allen doubled his season total with two swings, clubbing a pair of homers and finishing 3-for-5 with two runs scored and four RBI in Friday’s 16-10 victory.
He blasted his third home run of the series and fifth of the season, a solo shot in the second, to put the Mustangs up 2-0 in an eventual 6-3 triumph on Saturday. Allen contributed his second three-hit game, going 3-for-5 with three runs scored.
Allen tied Cal Poly’s career record for hits Friday with his first homer and broke the record with his second blast. He finished the weekend with 248 career hits. Allen also is the school’s leader in career doubles and at-bats.
Others nominated: Matt Chapman (Cal State Fullerton); Chester Pak (Cal State Northridge); Johnny Bekakis (Long Beach State); Spencer Brann (UC Davis); Marc Flores (Hawai‘i)
Rossetta’s Relief Spurs Long Beach State To Victory
Long Beach State senior Nick Rossetta (San Jose, Calif./Cabrillo College) delivered a career-best performance out of the bullpen to claim Big West Baseball Pitcher of the Week accolades.
The 6-0 right-hander entered Tuesday’s game against San Diego with two on and no outs in the first inning, and handcuffed the high-powered Torero offense in a 6-1 victory.
One of the nation’s top hitting teams and the national leader in doubles, San Diego mustered just five singles against Rosetta as he recorded all 27 outs, and in effect, threw a complete game five-hitter. Rossetta did not issue a walk and struck out two.
His previous career long for duration was 4.1 innings pitched. Rossetta improved to 2-1 on the year and lowered his ERA to 2.45.
Others nominated: Danny Zandona (Cal Poly); Thomas Eshelman (Cal State Fullerton); Evan Wolf (UC Davis); Matt Cooper (Hawai‘i)