Pentecost, Picchiotti Sweep CL Baseball Weekly Honors

CL Athletes of the Week (May 6-12) | TU Honors Page

UPLAND, Ind. – The Crossroads League announced its Athlete of the Week honors for May 6-12 on Monday afternoon, and the Trojans swept the baseball awards as Gabel Pentecost and Luke Picchiotti took home Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively.

The honors for No. 17-ranked Taylor come from the lone baseball game played during that span, which resulted in TU claiming the Crossroads League Tournament Championship with its 7-4 win over Saint Francis on May 6.

Pentecost's honor is the sophomore's second of his season, as the 2024 CL Pitcher of the Year capped his league postseason in style. The Fremont, Ind., native pitched four innings and allowed just one earned run while striking out eight batters.

Picchiotti, whose Player of the Week award is the junior's first, played a huge role in the Trojans' comeback win. The outfielder got TU on the scoreboard with a solo home run in the fifth inning that cut into a 3-0 deficit, and he later drew a bases-loaded, two-out walk to get Taylor within one at 4-3.

Fittingly, within hours of claiming the honors, Pentecost and Picchiotti came up clutch again in Taylor's first game of the 2024 NAIA Baseball Championship Opening Round.

In Monday's, May 13 game versus third-seeded MidAmerica Nazarene, Pentecost pitched seven innings of two-run ball to lower his ERA to 2.71, and Picchiotti launched another home run – his ninth of the season – as part of a three-hit, three-RBI day in the 10-2 win.

Third-seeded Taylor (42-14) continues play in the Opening Round at Winterholter Field on Wednesday, with first pitch of 12 noon scheduled versus fourth-seeded Indiana Southeast (34-18).