TALLAHASSEE, FLA.- The Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers cleaned up on the weekly FCSAA awards released on Tuesday as Bucs softball players Owen Bowers and Sarah Lawton were named the state's Player and Pitcher of the Week respectively, while FSW baseball players Victor Florentino and Ryan Gusto took home the same awards on their side of things.
Bowers was chosen unanimously as the Region VIII Player of the Week this week after powering FSW to three wins in as many outings. She provided the bulk of the damage for the Bucs as they outscored their opponents 32-2 in the three contests. Bowers hit .556 with three home runs and 12 RBI's on the week, including a 3 for 3, two home run, seven RBI explosion for the Bucs in the backend of their doubleheader against South Florida State on Tuesday. Bowers is hitting .456 with a team best 15 home runs and an NJCAA best 68 RBI's on the season through 43 FSW games played.
Lawton was an easy choice for Region VIII Pitcher of the Week honors after spinning the first perfect game in FSW history on Thursday. Lawton dazzled against Polk State, retiring all 15 batters she faced in an 8-0 run rule victory for the Bucs. She also threw a perfect inning on Tuesday against South Florida State to give her six innings pitched without allowing a baserunner on the week. Lawton is now 8-1 on the year with six saves to lead the NJCAA while posting a 1.53 ERA with 75 strikeouts in 73 1/3 innings on the season.
Florentino led the Bucs to a series win over Polk State, batting .750 and reaching base at an .818 clip on the week to earn his first Player of the Week honor. He had a pair of multi-hit games in FSW wins over the Eagles, going 2 for 3 with a pair of runs scored in the series opener and 3 for 3 with a double in the series clincher. In the middle game of the three game set he managed one of the four FSW hits in the contest and also reached base twice via walks. On the year Florentino is hitting .274 with two home runs and 16 RBI's.
Gusto was a unanimous choice for the state's Pitcher of the Week award after putting on a show for the ages Monday night against Polk State. Gusto worked 7 1/3 scoreless innings against the Eagles, but even that wasn't the story. The story was his 16 strikeouts, a new FSW record in the 22 outs that he recorded. He struck out the side three times including in back to back innings early in the contest to earn his fifth win on the year. He is now 5-0 with a 1.47 ERA in 43 innings pitched on the season. The 16 strikeouts Monday run his yearly total to 65 to lead the FSW staff.
The FSW Softball team is back in action on Tuesday as they travel to St. Petersburg for a Suncoast Conference doubleheader while the Bucs baseball team will next take on Miami Dade on the road in non-conference action on Wednesday.