(MSUB Athletics release)
BILLINGS – Being further recognized for his stellar performance over the weekend, Montana State University Billings baseball senior Kade Hall was named the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association West Region Player of the Week on Tuesday.
Hall picked up Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Week accolades on Monday, before being voted as the top performer in the west region by the NCBWA on Tuesday. “Kade deserves this regional recognition after the performance he put together to lead us offensively last week,” commented MSUB head coach Aaron Sutton. “He has been a leader all season long for us, and we are glad he has been healthy this year. He is a force at the top of our lineup, and has been a great pace setter for us.”
Hall hit three home runs and drove in nine last weekend in Ellensburg, Wash., helping the Yellowjackets collect a 3-1 series victory over Central Washington University. He Heh added two doubles, finishing the week with a line of 8-for-18 at the plate while hitting out of the leadoff spot. The senior from Pocatello, Idaho, also drew a pair of walks, helping lead an MSUB offense that scored 49 total runs and tied the GNAC record for home runs in a four-game series with 13.
After a career-high four hits and four RBIs in the opening game of the series, Hall had one of his biggest swings of the bat in Game 2. With the Yellowjackets trailing 5-4 entering the top of the seventh inning, Hall led off the frame with a game-tying home run and watched as his teammates added on four more runs to secure the win.
Hall had four more RBIs in MSUB’s 18-1 Game-3 victory, and kicked off a three-run sixth-inning rally with a leadoff single in Game 4.
Hall is third on the team with a .362 batting average, and he is second with seven home runs and 29 RBIs. He is the only player on MSUB’s team to have started all 30 games, and he has a .426 on-base percentage while slugging at .606.
This is Hall’s first career NCBWA Player of the Week honor, and it is the first regional player of the week for MSUB this season. The last Yellowjacket to claim the honor was Zach Robinson, who earned NCBWA West Region Player of the Week on Feb. 22, 2017.
The Yellowjackets (19-11, 14-6) enter the week tied for first place in the GNAC standings.
