University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Taylor Braley Named NCBWA Player of the Month
3/2/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) released its National Player of the Month awards for February today. Southern Miss sophomore third baseman Taylor Braley was named National Hitter of the Month, while Louisville sophomore left-hander Brendon McKay was named National Pitcher of the Month. Braley and McKay are the recipients of the first Player of the Month honors given by the NCBWA, which reviewed candidates submitted by conferences and schools.
Braley has started the season on a tear, homering five times in Southern Miss' first seven games - two more blasts than he had in all of 2015 - and posting a seven-game hitting streak. He boasts a .480 batting average, 12 RBI and 10 runs, a 1.160 slugging percentage and a .618 on-base mark to lead the Golden Eagles to a perfect 7-0 start. He homered in each game to lead Southern Miss to a three-game sweep of Eastern Illinois on opening weekend and finished last weekend's series against Northwestern State with dingers in each of the last two contests.
Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. For more information about the NCBWA, visit the association's official Web site, www.ncbwa.com.
