BOSTON – Suffolk baseball outfielders Brady Chant and Will Hopkins were recognized by the league Monday afternoon as the senior and freshmen were named GNAC Corvias Player and Rookie of the Week, respectively, the conference office announced. The laurels come on the heels of a 2-2 week for the Rams.
Chant batted .500, slugged 1.063 and reached base on a .556 connection rate with eight hits, four for extra bases including two solo shots and walked twice. He brought in six runs and scored seven himself to pace Suffolk's offense in every outing. In the season opener, the 2017 NCAA DIII Statistical Champion in triples wasted no time hitting his first hit for three bags in 2018 as his second hit in the 7-3 win over Albion was good for three bags. The next day the centerfielder put together a two-hit, three-RBI, one-run outing versus St. John Fisher. To open the double feature with Brockport, the Warwick, Rhode Island native sent a solo shot over the fence and went on to be involved in three of the Rams' five runs. He finished that 5-3, eight-inning triumph with three hits (3-4), two of which were jacks, with three runs and two RBI on his stat line. Chant closed out opening week action with a one run and one hit in the nightcap against the Golden Eagles.
Chant's outfield counterpart Hopkins received his first collegiate weekly accolade after putting together a slash line of .417/.533/.500 in four starts in left field. He put back-to-back multi-hit outings in the season opener against Albion and St. John Fisher. After going 2-for-2 with one RBI and two runs, he tallied a 3-for-4 effort at the dish and scored two runs against the Cardinals.
The pair are the first Rams to scoop up weekly awards from the conference in the same week since Jake Frasca and Kevin Sinatra were tabbed rookie and pitcher of the week March 28, 2016. It marks the first time that Suffolk had the conference's player and rookie of the week over the same seven days since in the Anthony Del Prete era and first in recent history, dating through the 2009-10 season.
Suffolk is back in action Tuesday, March 13 versus Stockton. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. at Lake Myrtle Park.