May 19, 2014
Mountain West Announces Player and Pitcher of the Week
LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - UNLV baseball's junior designated hitter A.J. Hernandez and sophomore right-handed pitcher Kenny Oakley earned Mountain West Player and Pitcher of the Week honors, respectively, the conference office announced earlier today.
Hernandez hit for an average of .462 with six hits, two runs scored and nine RBI over the four-game stretch, which included a sweep over Nevada, Reno. His slugging percentage for the week was .692 and he got on base at a .500 clip.
He opened the week by coming off the bench against Arizona State and was 1-for-2 with a double and two RBI in the Rebels' 9-5 loss to the Sun Devils.
Hernandez's best hitting performance came on Thursday in the series opener against UNR as he went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two doubles and a run scored in UNLV's 8-1 win. On Saturday he went 2-for-4 with three RBI and a walk in the Rebels' 17-9 win over the Wolf Pack.
Oakley picks up his second conference career honor after tossing eight scoreless innings on Saturday against UNR to help UNLV gain a 4-2 victory over its rival and a share of the Mountain West regular season championship. He was also honored last season after his performance against Gonzaga on Feb. 25, 2013.
He allowed just three hits in his outing and struck out five while walking only two. The win earned the Rebels the No. 1 seed in the 2014 MW Championship.
This is the first conference honor of the season for Hernandez and Oakley and the fifth time a player from UNLV has been recognized by the MW. Erick Fedde was named the Pitcher of the Week after his performance against Central Michigan in week one, Bryan Bonnell was named the Co-Pitcher of the week after his performance at Fresno State in week eight and Patrick Armstrong was named the Player of the Week after his performance against New Mexico in week 11.
UNLV (33-21/20-10 Mountain West) will be the No. 1 seed in the Mountain West Championship at Earl E. Wilson Stadium this week. The Rebels' first game will be at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday night against the highest seed of the winners on Wednesday. Play begins at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday as No. 6 Air Force and No. 7 San Jose State will compete in a "play-in" game. The winner of that game will face No. 3 San Diego State at 3:00 p.m. No. 4 Nevada, Reno and No. 5 Fresno State will conclude first day action at 7:00 p.m. The lowest seed of the winners on Wednesday will play New Mexico at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday.
