March 3, 2008
IOWA CITY – – The Big Ten office today announced that Wes Freie has been named Big Ten Player of the Week. In addition, Brock Alberts earned co-Pitcher of the Week accolades, sharing the honor with Minnesota’s Phil Isaksson. Both earned the conference weekly honor for the first time in their careers.
Freie had a stellar weekend in helping lead Iowa to a 2-1 record, including a 6-3 upset win over fifth-ranked Vanderbilt, at the Music City Classic in Nashville, TN. The first baseman, who was named tournament MVP, was 9-for-12 with a double, home run, two RBI and two walks. He led the team, hitting at a .750 clip and slugged at a 1.083 average for a combined OPS (on-base-plus-slugging-percentage) of 1.869. The junior led the Black and Gold against No. 5 Vanderbilt, going a perfect 4-for-4 with an RBI. Freie opened the tournament with a 3-for-5 performance in a 12-9 win over Xavier, scoring three runs and driving in one on a solo home run — the third of his career. On Sunday against Kansas, the Wilton, IA, native went 2-for-3 with two runs and a walk.
Alberts had a great season debut in Iowa’s come-from-behind win over Xavier last Friday. The senior right hander threw five and one-third innings in relief for the win. The Swisher, IA, native allowed no runs, scattered five hits with no walks and struck out a career-high 10 of the 21 batters he faced.
Iowa (3-3) returns to action this weekend when they travel to Springfield, MO, to play a three-game series against Missouri State (5-2).
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