NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State baseball freshman Daniel Pacella has been named a National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball News, the organization announced Monday morning.
Pacella, who was one of 13 players honored but was one of three freshmen and the only player from the Missouri Valley Conference, slugged four home runs as part of a 6-for-20 (.300) week at the plate.
Pacella launched a 109 MPH rocket well over the right field wall at top-ten Arkansas on Wednesday to extend the Redbird lead before slugging a two-run blast in the 8th inning of Saturday's game at Central Arkansas to give Illinois State the lead. Pacella smacked a grand slam in the 1st inning of Sunday's game before adding a 7th-inning home run.
Pacella finished the week slugging .900 with eight RBI, five runs scored, and nine chances handled in left field. He is the third Redbird freshman with two home runs in a game since 2000 and the first ISU freshman to hit a grand slam since 2011.
Pacella is the second player in Illinois State history to receive a National Player of the Week honor, joining Ryan Cermak. Cermak blasted home runs in four-straight at-bats in 2022, highlighted by a three-home run, 10-RBI game in which he smashed grand slams in back-to-back innings (at Western Illinois, 4/6/2022). Cermak earned National Player of the Week honors from four publications.
Illinois State is scheduled to play at Nebraska from March 10-12. The Huskers have won five of their last six games.
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