Covenant's Mitchell, Christian Earn USA South Weekly Honors

Monday, April 22, 2019

ROME, Ga. -- Covenant baseball senior John Mitchell was named the USA South Player of the Week, while freshman Hunter Christian was tabbed the Rookie of the Week for the period ending on April 21, announced the conference on Monday afternoon.

It is the first career weekly honors for both Mitchell and Christian. Mitchell is the first Covenant player to earn player of the week honors this season and Christian is the second Scot to collect rookie of the week accolades.

Both Mitchell and Christian were key for the Scots in a 4-1 week.

In the five games, Covenant scored 65 runs, including a season-high 25 in a victory over N.C. Wesleyan on Friday.

Mitchell, a senior from Macon, Ga., capped the regular season with a phenomenal week. The senior was a combined 13-for-24 (.542) with a .586 on-base percentage, a .958 slugging percentage, nine runs scored, 10 RBIs, three doubles, two triples, one home run, three walks and five stolen bases for the week. In a doubleheader sweep of Brevard last Monday, Mitchell was a combined 5-for-10 with three runs scored, four RBIs, a triple and a steal. Mitchell went 2-for-4 with a homer, two runs scored, and three RBIs in an 8-6 loss to Berry. Mitchell finished the week by going 6-for-10 with four runs scored, three RBIs, three doubles, one triple three walks and three stolen bases in a two-game sweep of N.C. Wesleyan.

On the year, Mitchell is hitting .341 with three homers, and leads the team with 42 RBIs and 21 stolen bases. Mitchell has hit safely in 11 straight games.

Christian, a freshman from Bostwick, Ga., was a combined 10-for-23 (.435) with a .480 on-base percentage, a .609 slugging percentage, seven runs scored, seven RBIs, one double, one home run and one walk on the weeks. In two wins over Brevard, Christian had two hits with two runs scored and one walk. In an 8-6 loss to Berry, Christian was 2-for-3 with one run scored, one run batted in and one double. Finally, in a two-game sweep of USA South rival N.C. Wesleyan, Christian was a combined 6-for-10 with four runs scored, six RBIs and one home run. Christian had a game-tying, two-run single in the bottom of the ninth inning of Covenant's 7-6, 10-inning victory over N.C. Wesleyan on Saturday.

Christian is hitting .263 on the season with two home runs, 23 RBIs, and 31 runs scored.

Covenant (16-20, 9-13 USA South) enters the USA South Tournament as the No. 8 seed and will face No. 1 seed Piedmont in first round action on Thursday, April 25. First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m. at Cleaveland Field on the campus of LaGrange College.