May 17, 2010
PHILADELPHIA - La Salle University freshman pitcher Pat Christensen has earned his second Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week honor after picking up a win and a save and helping the Explorers to a 4-0 week.
For the week, Christensen posted a 0.93 ERA in three outings, which included six scoreless innings of relief in A-10 action. He allowed just one run in 9.2 innings as he lowered his team-leading ERA to 3.72, and struck out eight batters.
On Tuesday, he kept Rider off the scoreboard in the ninth and 10th frames before La Salle won the game in walk-off fashion in the 11th. He earned a no-decision in the 12-10 victory over the Broncs which started a wild final week at Hank DeVincent Field.
In Thursday's game versus the Bonnies, he combined on La Salle's first shutout of the season with Eric Van Wyk. Christensen entered the game in the seventh with runners on first and second, one out, and ended the threat. He then completed the game with two more scoreless innings to pick up his ninth save of the season, tying the Explorers record for most saves in a single-season.
Then on Saturday, he came into the game with La Salle trailing 4-3 in the sixth with the bases loaded and two out. He ended that threat, and retired the Bonnies in order in the seventh and eighth. He allowed a lead-off double in the ninth before ending his time on the mound with three straight outs, the last a strikeout.
La Salle won the game in the bottom of the ninth with another walk-off win, the Explorers third of the week, and Christensen picked up the win. He improved to 4-4 this season and has now won or saved 13 of La Salle's 20 victories this season, and eight of its 13 league wins.
His nine saves tied the single-season save record at La Salle, as Gerard Breslin (2004-07) posted nine saves in a pair of seasons (2005 and 2007). His nine saves already rank him fifth on the all-time career saves list and are tied for first in the A-10 this season.
His overall numbers in 2010 include that 3.72 ERA, which is second in the A-10, 24 games, tied for third, and an opponent's batting average of .273, eighth. In conference-only games, he is fourth in ERA (3.20), tied for second in saves (5), sixth in opponent's average (.245), and tied for sixth in games (11).
Christensen, who became just the sixth Explorer to pick up an A-10 Rookie of the Week honor earlier this year with his selection on May 3, gets the 11th overall honor for the baseball team.
He now joins teammates John Malloy and Kevin Fuqua as the only Explorers to get multiple honors, as Malloy earned four (Feb. 19, March 12, April 16, and May 21) during his rookie campaign of 2007 and Fuqua two in 2008 (March 10 and April 21). Other honorees include Bryan Harvey (March 19, 2001), Kenny Elkind (March 27, 2006), and Sean Kennedy (May 5, 2008).
When Christensen was selected earlier, La Salle had earned an A-10 Player, a Pitcher, and a Rookie of the Week honor in the same season for only the second time in its 15 years in the conference. Jon Gyles (player, April 19) and Kevin Christy (pitcher, March 29) picked up the other awards this season and, with the four A-10 honors in 2010, it ties for the second most in a single season.
The most weekly honors earned in a single season was during the 2007 season (6), which was also the only other time La Salle earned all three honors. John Rickards (2005-08) picked up the player award (Feb. 19), Breslin earned the pitcher honor (April 16), to go with Malloy's four rookie nods.
La Salle (20-28, 13-11 A-10) has one more week left in its regular season, a three-game set at Massachusetts this weekend, with a Thursday (3 PM), Friday (1 PM), and Saturday (12 PM) series in Amherst.
