The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Towe Tabbed Pro-Line Athletic National Hitter Of The Week
3/17/2009 12:00:00β―AM | Baseball
March 17, 2009
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. -- The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association announced Tuesday it has selected UAB junior catcher Digger Towe as its Pro-Line Athletic National Hitter of the Week.
The NCBWA award marks the second honor this week for Towe, who was named the Conference USA Hitter of the Week on Monday. He is the first Blazer to earn National Player of the Week honors since former UAB pitcher Lucas Trotter on March 3, 2003.
The NCBWA Board reviews candidates from each Division I Conference each week and names winners each Tuesday throughout the season. In addition to Towe's recognition, Missouri right-hander Kyle Gibson was named Tuesday as the National Pitcher of the Week.
Towe helped UAB to a perfect 6-0 record last week while putting up monster offensive numbers. The Charlotte, Mich., product hit .571 (12-for-21) for the week and drove in 16 runs. He tallied four RBI in back-to-back midweek games last Tuesday and Wednesday against UT Martin and then batted in eight more runs in a four-game weekend series with Harvard.
Towe homered twice and doubled five times as he logged a 1.095 slugging percentage for the week. He recorded a .600 on-base percentage over the six games, striking out just once in 25 plate appearances.
Towe's numbers helped to ignite the Blazer lineup, which recorded a .402 team batting average for the week. UAB managed double-digit runs in all six games and out-scored it opponents 79-21.
For the season, Towe is now hitting .372, making a successful return from a labrum injury that forced him to miss almost the entire 2008 season. He has homered three times and leads Conference USA with 22 RBI.
With the six wins last week, UAB improved its record to 10-6 on the year. The Blazers will look to continue their recent string of success when they travel Wednesday to Starkville, Miss., for a 6:30 p.m. CT contest against Mississippi State.
