McGriff and Barnes sweep KCAC and Region IV weekly baseball honors
By: David Toelle, KWU Sports Information

For the second week in a row, Kansas Wesleyan has swept a set of weekly spring sports honors in the Kansas Conference and in NAIA Region IV. After Ashley Coker single-handedly swept last week’s KCAC Softball player and pitcher of the week honors, Guy McGriff and Casey Barnes have been named KCAC Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, this week.

McGriff, a senior outfielder from Humble, Texas, had six hits this week in four games, including a double and two homeruns. He hit .545 and had eight RBIs, seven of those coming in the doubleheader sweep of Sterling last Thursday. He was also named as NAIA Region IV Co-Player of the Week as the top selection, and will be considered for NAIA National Player of the Week, which will be released Wednesday.

In game one against the Warriors, McGriff was 2-for-3 at the plate with a double and a two-run homerun with four RBIs. McGriff added another pair of hits in game two, including another solo shot, his fourth of the year, and drove in three RBIs.

In the Saint Mary series on Saturday, McGriff was 2-for-3 in the first game, and drove in a run in game two on a sacrifice fly in the first.

Barnes, a freshman pitcher from Chandler, Ariz., was named the KCAC Pitcher of the Week. Barnes threw a complete game two-hit shutout on Thursday afternoon against Sterling College. Both hits were infield singles. He struck out five and walked just one in his seven innings of work as the Coyotes picked up the win 5-0.

In addition to his selection as KCAC Pitcher of the Week, Barnes was also selected as NAIA Region IV Co-Pitcher of the Week.

Kansas Wesleyan finished the regular season 24-24 overall, and 15-9 in conference play. The Coyotes will be the number one seed in this week’s KCAC Post-Season Baseball Tournament and will play Ottawa on Wednesday at Hobart-Detter field in Hutchinson.

-- KWU SI --