McDonough and Pecora capture league pitcher and hitter honors

April 23, 2007

NORTON, MA- Wheaton College baseball standouts Chris McDonough (Weymouth, MA/Weymouth) and Nick Pecora (Highland Park, NJ/Immaculata) captured league pitcher and hitter honors for the week ending on Sunday, April 22.

Pecora picked up his first career Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) and New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) player-of-the-week awards, as he shared the ECAC honor with Johnson and Wales University junior Brad Jackson. McDonough earned his third career league honor after being named NEWMAC Co-Pitcher of the Week with Springfield College sophomore Jimmy Lisowski.

A sophomore first baseman, Pecora went 11-for-17 for a .647 average with eight RBI and a .765 slugging percentage. Pecora matched a school record with six hits in Friday's conference-clinching 15-0 win at WPI, as he was 6-for-6 with four RBI and a double. He also went 2-for-4 with two RBI during Thursday's 4-2 loss at Babson College, finishing 8-for-10 with six RBI against league competition. Pecora completed the week by going a combined 3-for-7 with two runs, two RBI and a double in Saturday's split at Brandeis University.

Pecora's productive week moved him up the conference leaderboard, as he is now tied for the league lead with 29 runs batted in. He also stands seventh in batting average with a .382 clip.

McDonough, who is a junior southpaw, turned in an outstanding performance at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) Friday, spinning a two-hit complete-game shutout to help Wheaton capture its ninth straight regular season conference crown. Facing just two batters over the minimum, McDonough fanned seven and walked none. Tossing just 84 pitches, he watched his defense record 15 outs via ground balls while turning three double plays.

McDonough stands among the conference's best in multiple statistical categories, including standing second with a 1.80 earned run average, tied for second with 46 strikeouts and tied for fourth with four wins and an .800 winning percentage among pitchers with at least five decisions.

The duo looks to lead Wheaton to its eighth NEWMAC Tournament title this week in the league's nine-year history, as the Lyons are scheduled to host this weekend's conference tournament for the seventh consecutive year. Ranked first in the region and seventh nationally, Wheaton is 23-9 overall and 9-3 in conference play. The Blue and White hosts Rhode Island College in a non-conference game tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 p.m.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 4/26/07.
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