RRAC Baseball Players of the Week are Texas A&M-Victoria's Smith and Southwest's Segal

RRAC Baseball Player of the Week – Garrett Smith – Texas A&M-Victoria

Junior infielder Garrett Smith proved why he's one of the hottest hitters in the NAIA last week. The Katy, Texas native drove in 10 runs in five games to help TAMUV push its NAIA-leading winning streak to 11 games. Smith homered in each of TAMUV's last two games to sweep Xavier (La.) and has recorded a hit in each of the last 14 games. He reached base safely in the last 16 games for the Jaguars.

Smith went 13-for-25 with five doubles, a triple, eight runs, and a stolen base, for a batting average of .520, on-base percentage of .556, and slugging percentage of 1.040.

On defense, Smith tallied 22 putouts out of 25 total chances. He added two assists and three double plays.

Smith leads the NAIA with 10 home runs, is second with 40 RBIs, and is third with 11 doubles. He leads the Jaguars with 40 RBIs and 189 putouts.

The Jaguars are second in the RRAC with a 13-2 conference record and 26-6 overall.

RRAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week – Brandon Segal – Southwest (N.M.)

Freshman right-handed pitcher Brandon Segal led the Mustangs to a 16-3 win over Jarvis Christian (Texas). He pitched a seven-inning complete game, while allowing seven hits, no earned runs, and four strikeouts.

Segal has played in six games this season and has allowed 24 hits, three walks, and 10 earned runs. He has struck out nine. His ERA is 4.58, and he has tallied one win and one loss. Segal pitched in 19.2 innings.

The Mustangs are 11-20 this season and 7-8 in the RRAC.

RRAC Notebook:

• LCU R-freshman infielder Drake Aldridge had four hits in the two games he played, all four went for extra bases - two doubles and two home runs. He also drove in eight runs and scored five times, while being walked twice.
• TAMUV junior infielder Garrett Smith drove in 10 runs in five games to help his team to an NAIA-leading winning streak of 11 games. Smith homered in each of TAMUV's last two games to sweep XULA and has recorded a hit in each of the last 14 games and reached base safely in the last 16 games for the Jaguars.
• TAMUT senior outfielder Jayce Blalock had a strong outing in the Eagles' series against the No. 15 LCU Wildcats. He went 8-for-12 in his at-bats with a .667 avg. Blalock had four RBIs, four doubles, and a home run, while striking out only once.
• OLLU senior utility Benjamin Hovda went 8-for-16 in a nonconference game against Huston-Tillotson (Texas) and a three-game series against LSUS. He went 2-for-5, adding two runs in his team's victory over previously undefeated LSUS.
• LSUA senior outfielder Cade LaBruyere led his team to a conference sweep against Texas College. He tallied six runs, a double, a triple, two home runs, seven RBIs, and a stolen base.
• USW junior outfielder Dong Joon Shin led the team to a three-game series win against Jarvis Christian (Texas). He added four runs, a triple, a home run, five RBIs, and one stolen base.
• XULA's graduate student Lawrence Steed went a combined 7-for-11 (.636 batting average) with two RBIs and a run scored over four games this week.
• TAMUT junior right-handed pitcher Connor Brady was key in the Eagles' victory over the No. 15 Wildcats of LCU. He pitched five innings, giving up only three hits, and struck out five batters.
• TAMUV senior right-banded pitcher made two starts last week and A&M-Victoria won both en route to an NAIA-leading 11-game win streak. He struck out a pair in two innings against John Melvin before punching out 10 against XULA in game two of a three-game series. It's the fifth time the Victoria native has eclipsed double-digit strikeouts this season. He's tied for the NAIA lead in wins (7) and is third in strikeouts (67).
• LSUA senior right-handed pitcher Carter Fabre won his game against TXC 9-0. He pitched five innings, allowed two hits and four walks, while striking out seven.
• OLLU junior Noah Ferraro led his team to a 14-6 win over previously undefeated and NAIA top-ranked LSUS. He pitched four innings, allowing five hits, five runs, and five walks, while striking out four.
• LSUS junior right-handed pitcher Brock Lucas turned in a dominant, complete-game performance to lead the Pilots to a 5-3 victory over OLLU. Lucas tossed a seven-inning complete game while allowing just three runs (two earned) on six hits. Lucas posted a 2.57 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP for the week, while averaging 10.29 strikeouts per nine innings.
• USW freshman right-handed pitcher Brandon Segal pitched a seven-inning complete game win over JCU. He allowed seven hits and three runs, while striking out four.
• LCU R-senior left-handed pitcher Seth Whitney came on and steadied the ship, helping keep LCU in the game, which the Wildcats would eventually tie up. He struck out five.

This week in the RRAC: