Feb. 3—Peach Belt Conference honors came rolling in for USC Aiken following opening weekend for baseball and softball, with the Pacers bringing home four awards in total from the league office.
USCA baseball (2-0) swept the PBC weekly awards after sweeping Mars Hill, as Yariel Diaz was named PBC Player of the Week and Ben Shepherd took home PBC Pitcher and Freshman of the Week honors.
Diaz, a senior from Orlando, Fla., hit .714 against Mars Hill in the doubleheader. He registered five hits in seven at bats. Diaz accounted for a double and a grand slam on the way to five RBI. He also scored four times and walked three times.
Diaz was perfect in the field, registering 15 putouts.
Shepherd, a native of Trion, Ga., recorded the program’s second no-hit bid in USCA’s Division II history. He had five strikeouts and tossed 66 strikes. Shepherd gave up a fourth-inning walk. In the nightcap victory over Mars Hill, he had 15 fly ball outs and seven groundouts.
The NCAA believes he is the first student-athlete to record a no-hitter in his collegiate debut and the first to do so on Opening Day.
USCA softball (1-1) standout Claire Radford also was named PBC Freshman of the Week, as announced by the league office.
Radford, a pitcher from Leonardtown, Md., picked up the win in her collegiate debut.
In the second game against Anderson, Radford got the starting nod and tossed 6 1/3 innings. She struck out seven and gave up just seven hits on the way to earning the win. Through the first six innings, she gave up just two runs.
Radford tossed 145 pitches and faced 32 batters in her debut.
About the Author
