Snyder Named Student-Athlete of the Week

Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks

May 06, 2019 02:15 PM | Baseball, General, Golf, Rowing, Track & Field

By: WVU Athletics Communications

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Following a dominant, complete-game performance against Marshall, junior left-handed pitcher Nick Snyder of the West Virginia University baseball team has been named the WVU Student-Athlete of the Week, presented by University Apartments.

Snyder was one strike away from a no-hitter in a 16-strikeout, complete game shutout on April 30. In one of the most dominating pitching performances in program history, Snyder threw his first career complete game to go along with the one hit allowed, one walk and career-best 16 strikeouts. He allowed just two baserunners in the 2-0 win over Marshall, a walk in the third inning and a two-out single in the ninth.

The one-hitter was the first by a Mountaineer since Zac Cline held Virginia Tech to one hit on May 23, 2003 and the 10th nine-inning one-hitter in program history. Snyder's 16 strikeouts are the most by a WVU hurler since Wes Shaw had 16 on April 8, 1989, against Fairmont State. The 16 strikeouts tied for eighth-most in program history,and Snyder's gem is one of seven 16-strikeout performances in WVU history. In the Big 12 last week, Snyder was the only pitcher to notch more than 10 strikeouts and held opponents to a Big 12-best 0.36 batting average, nearly double the second-lowest in the league.

This Week in Baseball: The Mountaineers are on the road for four games this week, beginning at Virginia Tech on Wednesday, May 8, at 6 p.m. ET … WVU then travels to Kansas State for its final Big 12 series of the season … the series in Manhattan, Kansas, commences on Friday, May 10, at 7 p.m. ET, and continues on Saturday, May 11, at 5 p.m. ET … the finale at Tointon Family Stadium is slated for Sunday, at noon ET.

Last Week in Baseball: WVU went 2-2 last week, with a 2-0 shutout win over Marshall and a series loss to TCU … the Mountaineers opened the week with a 2-0 win over Marshall, as junior left-hander Nick Snyder took a no hitter into the ninth inning and struck out a career-best 16 batters in the complete-game, one-hit shutout … Snyder allowed just two baserunners, a walk in the third inning and a two-out single in the ninth … WVU's offense was fueled by single runs in the third and fifth, both on two-out base hits, and senior right fielder Darius Hill had three hits, an RBI and a run scored to lead the way … West Virginia lost the opener to TCU, 14-5, as the Horned Frogs used a 10-run seventh inning to pull away … junior right-hander Alek Manoah suffered the loss, and allowed five runs, four earned, on eight hits with five strikeouts and four walks in 6.0 innings … TCU claimed the series victory with a 6-1 win on Saturday, as WVU was held to one run on four hits … the Mountaineer bullpen held TCU to one run on four hits in the final 5.2 innings … WVU walked off in the finale, as Hill hit a two-run home run to cap a three-run ninth inning in a 6-5 come-from-behind victory … West Virginia added two in the seventh, which helped erase a 4-1 deficit that TCU made 5-3 in the top of the ninth … junior first baseman Kevin Brophy also homered in the ninth inning before Hill's two-out heroics on a 3-2 pitch.

Notes: West Virginia is 28-17 on the season, 15-5 at home, 13-12 on the road and 7-5 against top-25 teams … WVU is 11-10 in Big 12 play and in fourth place in the league standings … WVU is ranked No. 21 in the RPI, and the Big 12 is the No. 2-ranked RPI conference in the country … West Virginia is ranked nationally for the fourth consecutive week and is No. 20 in the Perfect Game poll, No. 21 by Baseball America and No. 22 in the D1Baseball rankings … the Mountaineers suffered just their second Big 12 series loss of the season, which snapped a stretch of five consecutive conference victories … it was WVU's longest conference series win streak since it won six Big East series in a row in 2003 … six of WVU's last seven wins have come in the ninth inning or later, with all four home wins coming in walk-off fashion … WVU had won 13 of its last 17 games prior to the series loss to TCU … West Virginia has won seven in a row against Marshall and nine of the last 10 and improved to 48-24 in the all-time series … Snyder's one-hitter was the first by a Mountaineer since Zac Cline held Virginia Tech to one hit on May 23, 2003 and the 10th nine-inning one-hitter in program history … Snyder's 16 strikeouts are the most by a WVU hurler since Wes Shaw had 16 on April 8, 1989, against Fairmont State, and are tied for eighth-most in program history … WVU is 8-0 in Snyder's starts, and he has a team-high-tying six wins on the season … Hill hit a pair of home runs last week, and has five on the season and a team-high-tying 16 in his career … Manoah had just his third non-quality start in 12 starts this season … senior shortstop Andrew Zitel hit his second home run of the season and fourth of his career on Friday … Brophy hit his seventh home run of the season and 13th of his career in the ninth inning of the finale against TCU … senior left-hander Zach Reid collected the win over TCU and is 2-0 in 2019 and 3-0 in his career.

This Week in Track & Field: The Mountaineers travel to Norman, Oklahoma, for the 2019 Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championship, from May 10-12, at the John Jacobs Track Complex.

Last Week in Track & Field: West Virginia earned an outdoor season-best 10 wins at the Mountaineer Open at the Track and Field Complex at Mylan Park on May 4 … on the track, freshman Margaret Rymer won the 400-meter hurdles in 1:06.50, while redshirt senior Bria Welker took the 400 meters in 57.35 … redshirt freshman Marianne Abdalah won the 3,000 meters in 10:07.80, before redshirt freshman Hayley Jackson finished first in the 800 meters in 2:08.66 … redshirt freshman Katherine Dowie closed the meet with a victory in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:52.40 … in the field, freshman Sada Wright won the discus throw with a mark of 45.17 meters, while freshman Peter-Gay McKenzie won the long jump with a mark of 5.68 meters … redshirt seniors Shamoya McNeil (12.33 meters) and Madelin Gardner (4.22 meters) won the triple jump and pole vault, respectively, while redshirt junior Faith Penny took first in the high jump with a mark of 1.65 meters.

Notes: Saturday marked the third and final outdoor home meet for the Mountaineer this season … it also served as the team's regular-season finale … Wright's performance in the discus throw was good for a career best and the No. 3 mark in program history … Jackson's time in the 800 meters was the fifth-best in program history … WVU finished ninth as a team at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship last year, garnering four trips to the podium … Amy Cashin finished second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, while Gardner placed fourth in the pole vault … additionally, Meghan Jean-Baptiste finished seventh overall in the heptathlon at last season's conference meet, while then-redshirt sophomore Olivia Hill placed eight in the 10,000 meters … entering the week, four Mountaineers rank in the top 48 on the NCAA East Region performance list … Gardner sits No. 3 in the region and No. 6 nationally in the pole vault, while McNeil ranks No. 22 in the triple jump … on the track, Hill sits No. 27 in the 10,000 meters, while Jackson is No. 45 in the 5,000 meters.

This Week in Rowing: West Virginia does not compete this week ... the Mountaineers will travel to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, on Sunday, May 19, for the 2019 Big 12 Championship on Melton Lake.

Last Week in Rowing: WVU did not compete.

Notes: The Mountaineers are set to compete at the Big 12 Championship for the seventh time since joining the Conference in 2013 ... this marks the fifth consecutive season the Big 12 Championship will be hosted on Melton Lake in Oak Ridge ... West Virginia has competed on Melton Lake every year since the 2012-13 season ... at last year's Big 12 Championship, finished fifth after collecting 47 team points ... to cap last season, then-junior Carly Ledbetter was selected to the All-Big 12 First Team.

This Week in Golf: The Mountaineers do not compete until May 13.

Last Week in Golf: West Virginia was off last week.

Notes: West Virginia was selected for the 2019 NCAA Men's Golf Louisville Regional, marking the program's first NCAA appearance since 1947 … it is the Mountaineers' first NCAA selection since the team was reinstated in 2015 … WVU will compete at the University of Louisville Country Club in Simpsonville, Kentucky … the competition will start May 13 and end on May 15 … sophomore Matthew Sharpstene, senior Max Sear, junior Etienne Papineau, sophomore Logan Perkins and junior Philipp Matlari will represent the Mountaineers … the team celebrated the 2018-19 season on Thursday at its annual banquet … Sharpstene was named the team's Most Outstanding Player, Matlari earned the Academic Achievement Award and Papineau won Most Improved … the Mountaineers also honored seniors Sear and Tristan Nicholls.