Two baseball players earning honors

By Rachel Kucharski

Two Hood College baseball players earned MAC Commonwealth Players of the Week honors after the opening week of play.

Dutch DeProspero earned back-to-back MAC Commonwealth Pitcher of the Week for his performance Feb. 16 against Elmira College where he struck out five batters and allowed only one hit over four innings of play. DeProspero earned his second Pitcher of the Week award the following weekend when he took the mound against Pitt-Greensburg totaling another five strikeouts, three hits and no earned runs over six innings.

DeProspero’s two Pitcher of the Week honors this season bring him to five in his career.

“This is my fifth pitcher of the week, but it means just as much as my first,” DeProspero said. “The best advice I’ve received is to simplify a complicated game and make big moments small by slowing them down.”

In the batter’s box, it was Tyler Schwarzman who earned MAC Player of the Week honors, completing the Hood College sweep on MAC accolades. Schwarzman went 4-4 in the first game against Elmira with a double, two RBIs, three stolen bases and two runs scored. On the day, Schwarzman totaled five hits in seven at-bats.

“I feel a lot of pride from winning MAC Player of the Week,” Schwarzman said. “It means the work and preparation I put in throughout the year leading into the season paid off, which motivates me to keep working hard and playing well.”

As of March 6, Schwarzman has a batting average of 0.42.

His advice to upcoming players: “Don’t rush your development,” Schwarzman said. “Try to get better each day and by the time you are a senior you will be one heck of a ballplayer. When it is your time to shine; play hard and have fun.”