PING! Baseball Awards are Back

Two OCCAC baseball programs started their 2024 campaigns, each picking up an individual weekly honor from the conference office. Owens’ Cullen McFarland is the OCCAC Player of the Week for Feb. 12-18 while Jaren Slusher of Cuyahoga is the OCCAC Pitcher of the Week.

McFarland batted .417 (5-12) with a .917 slugging percentage during a 4-game week. He was pivotal in the pair of Express victories, driving in four runs on three hits including a homerun and a double. The Owens third baseman loves starting off hot, winning the first OCCAC Player of the Week laurels for 2023 as well.

Slusher took the mound Sunday for the Triceratops, delivering six innings in the win. He allowed just four baserunners and two runs while striking out four batters before handing it over to the bullpen for the final frame of the 7-inning contest against Cleveland State Community College. This marks Slusher’s third career honor and first as a Triceratops after nabbing two for Edison State in ’23.