Baseball – Pinelands Standout, Brick Junior Claim Week 6 Player of the Week Awards
Ocean County Sports Medicine Week 6 Player of the Week
Rian O’Rourke, Pinelands
O’Rourke has carried the Pinelands offense throughout the season, hitting every caliber of opposing pitching. From May 9 to May 14, the senior shortstop went 6-for-13 with three doubles and a triple while driving in four runs, which was crucial in helping the Wildcats claim a spot in the Shore Conference Tournament.
Pinelands picked up two wins early in the week over Manchester and Toms River North to reach .500 in time to qualify for the SCT, the latter of which sent the Wildcats to the Ocean County Tournament quarterfinals. O'Rourke starred in both, starting with a 3-for-5 game with two doubles and three RBI in an 11-5 win over Manchester.
Teammate Stephen DeMilio carried Pinelands to a 1-0 win over Toms River North the next night with a three-hit shutout and a 2-for-3 performance at the plate with a double, but he needed O'Rourke to help finish it off. O'Rourke also went 2-for-3 and drove in the game's lone run with an RBI triple.
O'Rourke won the Week 6 Player of the Week award in a runaway, collecting 54.6 percent of the vote to beat runner-up Mike Arent of Jackson Memorial (22.8 percent)
Ocean County Sports Medicine Week 6 Pitcher of the Week
Kyle Knowsley, Brick
The Green Dragons completed a sweep of Toms River North last week and Knowsley nailed down the second win with a career-best pitching performance.
The junior right-hander fired a complete game against the Mariners, allowing one run on six hits and one walk while striking out nine in a 3-1 Brick win.
Knowsley racked up 35 percent of the vote to win the latest Pitcher of the Week award, besting Donovan Catholic senior Shaun O'Keefe (25 percent).
For winning the Player and Pitcher of the Week awards, both O'Rourke and Knowsley will receive a Player of the Week shirt courtesy of Ocean County Sports Medicine.
2022 Player/Pitcher of the Week Winners
Week 1: Cristian Bernardini, Manalapan/Dan Furlong, Howell
Week 2: Colin Matuschat, Point Beach/Stephen DeMilio, Pinelands
Week 3: Thomas Strauch, Howell/Tyler Bell, Central
Week 4: Russell Halvorsen, Howell/Steve Svenson, Red Bank Catholic
Week 5: Brady Oswick, St. John Vianney/Ryan Rogers, St. Rose
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