Feb. 14, 2006
EVANSTON, Ill. - Junior pitcher Dan Schwartz (New York, N.Y./Northern Valley Regional) and sophomore outfielder Antonio Mulé (Lodi, N.J./Lodi) were named Big Ten Pitcher and Player of the Week by the conference office today.
Schwartz pitched in two games over the weekend at South Florida, picking up NU's lone win. He totaled four and one-third innings on the mound, giving up just one hit. He pitched the final three innings in NU's game two 2-0 win, which spanned 13 innings and five hours and eight minutes. He recorded five strikeouts, compared to zero walks and no runner reached second base in any of his innings. He also pitched one and one-third innings of no-hit, no-run baseball in the Wildcats' 5-2 loss to open the season.
Mulé started all three of Northwestern's games at South Florida, two as the designated hitter and one as the right fielder. The New Jersey native hit .400 (6-for-15) in the three games against the Bulls, which included one home run, a double, three RBI and three runs scored. He had a hit in every game, but broke out in game three, going 4-for-5, with a game-tying home run in the seventh inning. He drove in three runs and scored twice in their third game, a 9-8 ninth-inning loss. Down, 7-6, heading into the top of the seventh inning, Mule hit a one-out towering solo blast to straightaway centerfield. The round-tripper easily cleared the 20-foot batter's eye with the centerfield dimension posted as 400 feet. He also posted a slugging percentage of .667 and an on-base percentage of .438, totaling 10 bases.
NU is next in action, this weekend, traveling to Richmond, Va., to take on Virginia Commonwealth in a three-game series. Game one is set for 4 p.m. (ET) Friday, February 17.