Dale Francis, Jr. of Erskine Named NCBWA Division II Hitter of the Week
DALLAS - The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) announced on Wednesday night that Erskine first baseman Dale Francis, Jr. is the NCAA Division II National Hitter of the Week.
The Conference Carolinas and NCBWA Southeast Region Player of the Week finished Erskine’s four games last week hitting .667 (10-of-15) with 13 RBIs and eight runs scored. A sophomore from Fort Pierce, Florida, Francis had two four-hit games in addition to seven extra-base hits on four home runs and three doubles. Francis owned a 1.667 slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .737. In Erskine’s 21-9 game one win over Barton, Francis finished the game going 4-for-5 with eight RBIs and four runs scored. He had three home runs in the contest. Francis currently leads Conference Carolinas in slugging percentage (.946), on-base percentage (.539) and OPS (1.485). He is second in the league in batting average at .459.
This is the third time this season a Conference Carolinas baseball student-athlete has earned national honors. The complete list of winners is below.
Jake Karaba of Lewis was named National Pitcher of the Week.
Division II Regional Players of the Week:
- Atlantic: Justin Byler, Shippensburg (Hitter); Kevin Vaupel, Seton Hill (Pitcher)
- Central: Jake Hjelle, Minnesota Crookston (Hitter); Mason Philley, Arkansas-Monticello (Pitcher)
- East: Anthony Fontana, Queens (N.Y.) (Hitter); Jeffrey Praml, Southern New Hampshire (Pitcher)
- Midwest: Michael Gould, Maryville (Hitter); Jake Karaba, Lewis (Pitcher)
- South: Sam Kuchinski, Montevallo (Hitter); Jacob Smith, West Alabama (Pitcher)
- South Central: Jake Williams, Metro State (Hitter); Kade Bragg, Angelo State (Pitcher)
- Southeast: Dale Francis, Jr., Erskine (Hitter); Mitch Farris, Wingate (Pitcher)
- West: Matthew Piotrowski, Cal State-Los Angeles (Hitter); Eddie Curley, Holy Names (Pitcher)
Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. Members receive a membership card, directory, newsletter updates and official votes in the Howser Award Player of the Year, Regional Player of the Year and NCBWA All-America voting. The NCBWA also sponsors preseason All-America awards, publication and writing contests.
2023 NCBWA Division II Players of the Week:
- Feb. 8: Casey O’Laughlin, Azusa Pacific (Hitter, West); Brayden Johnson, Arkansas Fort Smith (Pitcher, South Central)
- Feb. 15: Christian Jayne, UNC Pembroke (Hitter, Southeast); Braxton Pearson, Angelo State (Pitcher, South Central)
- Feb. 22: Nate Mieszkowski, Missouri Southern (Hitter, Central);
Branden Kunz, UNC Pembroke (Pitcher, Southeast)
- Mar. 1: Cole Harness, UVA Wise (Hitter, Southeast); Cam Dimidjian, USC Beaufort (Pitcher, Southeast)
- Mar. 8: Tyler Bradley, Emory & Henry (Hitter, Southeast); Trevor Sharp, Shepherd (Pitcher, Atlantic)
- Mar. 15: Luke Napleton, Quincy (Hitter, Midwest); Noah Windhorst, Columbus State (Pitcher, Southeast)
- Mar. 22: Dale Francis, Jr., Erskine (Hitter, Southeast); Jake Karaba, Lewis (Pitcher, Midwest)