April 1, 2009

From Western Kentucky Athletics website

JAKE SANFORD’S SLUGFEST GARNERS C-USA HITTER OF THE WEEK HONORS

DALLAS, Tex. _ For the third time in Conference USA history, a player has earned back-to-back Hitter of the Week honors.

That player is WKU Baseball’s Jake Sanford (Dartmouth, N.S.), who went 12-for-20 over the past week with five home runs with eight runs scored and 15 batted in.

Sanford (Dartmouth, N.S.) had a .600/.636/1.400 slash line for the week, helping the Hilltoppers go 3-0-1, pushing their overall mark to 14-11-1 and hold at second-place in the C-USA standings with a record of 7-1-1.

It is WKU’s best start in league action since beginning with an 8-1 record in the Sun Belt Conference in 2009.

In Tuesday’s 12-9 victory at Eastern Kentucky, Sanford went 3-for-6 with three home runs, eight RBIs and four runs scored. He became the first WKU player to hit three home runs in a game since Jordan Newton in 2006, and only the fourth C-USA hitter to do so since 2010. Newton played five seasons in the Detroit Tigers and Pittsburgh Pirates systems.

Sanford’s eight RBIs were the most by a Hilltopper since at least 2005 (when game-by-game records are available) and tied for the fifth-most in C-USA history.

He continued his tear over the weekend, going 9-for-14 against the Charlotte 49ers — including back-to-back four-hit games to cap the series — with two home runs, seven runs batted in and four runs scored.

For the season, Sanford leads C-USA hitters in multiple offensive categories with 14 home runs, 24 extra-base hits, 42 runs batted in, 33 runs scored, 93 total bases and an .886 slugging percentage to lead all C-USA hitters.

In nine league games, he tops the charts with a .462 batting average six home runs, 19 runs batted in, 14 runs scored, 38 total bases and a .974 slugging percentage.

Across Division I, his 14 home runs rank second, 42 runs batted in are tied for fourth and 33 runs scored are tied for 16th, while his 93 total bases and .886 slugging percentage stand third overall.

The weekly award is presented by Top of the World. It is the eighth C-USA Hitter of the Week honor by a Hilltopper over the past five years, as Sanford becomes the second WKU player (Anderson Miller in 2015) to win it twice in the same season.

Topper Quotes

“Our team has taken conference play to a new level of focus and performance this season. We proved that this weekend by excelling in all facets of the game, whether we were ahead or trailing. My mentality and expectations for myself and this team are set on winning every pitch and focusing on the task in front of us.” — Junior Jake Sanford.

“The biggest thing about Jake is how he has remained confident in his ability and consistent in his approach. He just goes about his business and what you see is what you get. He’s a down-to-earth person who is a tremendous student-athlete here at WKU and we’re glad to have him.” — Coach John Pawlowski.