Behind another historic pitching that vaulted this student-athlete into another top spot in Merrimack's record, senior PJ Browne of the Merrimack College baseball program has been named Fuddruckers Male Athlete of the Week.
The left-handed ace of Merrimack's staff threw a career-high 143 pitches on Saturday to lead the Navy and Gold to a 3-2 win over SNHU, the leaders and most likely champions of the Northeast Division. The Rutland, Mass. native worked into the ninth inning of Saturday's 3-2 victory, allowed just one earned run and two runs overall to come away with his third win of the season. Browne threw in two games overall, striking out six batters that included a relief appearance against Bentley that saw the fourth-year Warrior close out Merrimack's 19-14 victory over the Falcons.
Browne's win on Saturday marked the 17th of his career, tying John Guilmet's '97 program record that has stood for 21 years. Last week, Browne set a new program strikeout record with his 231st career punchout, and ranks among the top three in school history with 232.0 innings pitched
His career season continued on Sunday, lowering his career-best ERA to 2.05 on the year. He ranks eighth league-wide in ERA, innings pitched (61.1) and is 12th in strikeouts (56). He leads Merrimack's staff in all three areas.
Browne and the rest of the Warriors return to action on Tuesday afternoon, when the Navy and Gold play their season finale against Bentley University at 3:30 p.m. in Waltham, Mass.
