Brad Czarnowski of the baseball team has been named The Northeastern News Player of the Week after going 4-for-11 with two homeruns and three RBI in a three game series with North Carolina State, the 20th ranked team in the nation.
Each of the senior outfielder’s round-trippers came at the expense of Wolfpack All-American pitchers, Michael Rogers on Friday and Vern Sterry on Saturday.
Czarnowski was also named co-captain of the squad along with Jeff Heriot.
“He’s the proverbial silent, strong leader,” said coach Neil McPhee. “He’s extremely well respected by his teammates and coaching staff.
“He’s a hard-nosed, competitive athlete, and he just goes out and plays every inning, every pitch,” McPhee continued. “Every player in the program looks up to him, he just has those people skills that provide leadership to any group, athletes or not. His leadership comes from the fact that he does on the field what all coaches and players want a teammate to do.”
McPhee has tracked his progression of the Waltham, Mass. native as a defensive specialist who was the opening day starter in centerfield as a freshman and has since evolved into a potent offensive weapon.
“Defensively was always his strength, but this year he’s providing very strong offense,” said McPhee. “He’s hitting the ball very hard, he’s hitting the long ball as well as the long drive. He’s becoming a complete player, and that’s what you want from your senior captain, to be a player that can chase down a ball in the outfield and knock in the winning run when it’s needed.”
Czarnowski was clutch in the Huskies biggest games, going 3-for-4 with four RBI in the America East title game, an 11-0 victory over Stony Brook. He finished AE tournament play with a .385 average, including a pair of homers and six RBI. He was named to the All-Tournament team for his efforts.
As a sophomore, Czarnowski carved a niche for himself as a defensive specialist in the outfield and the team’s leadoff hitter, finishing the season with 40 runs, good for second on the team. He also collected 41 hits and swiped nine bases.
So far this season, Czarnowski has batted .257 with two homeruns and five RBI, and a slugging percentage of .457.
— Peter Conroy, News Staff
