Feb. 23, 2009

IRVING, Texas - Just one outing into his collegiate career, University of Memphis relief pitcher Heith Hatfield has earned Conference USA honors, as he was tabbed the C-USA Pitcher of the Week for the opening weekend of 2009 action the league's office announced this afternoon.

A freshman from Bartlett, Tenn., Hatfield had one of the most dominant collegiate debuts in Memphis baseball history in preserving a 2-1 win over Kansas on Sunday, the Tigers second win over the Jayhawks in three days at the Service Academies Classic. The righthander struck out eight batters and held KU to just one hit in three innings of relief to earn a save in his first outing in the collegiate ranks. Hatfield notched a Tiger record by fanning four batters in the eighth inning. He retired six of the first eight batters he faced on strikes.

"Sunday was certainly a great day for Heith," said Tiger skipper Daron Schoenrock. "This is an honor he greatly deserved. It shows what can happen when you have four pitches going for strikes. The coaching staff loved the way he came out of the bullpen and competed, and we are excited for him to get this honor."

Hatfield is the first U of M pitcher to garner the league's weekly pitching honors since Scott McGregor was named C-USA Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 27, 2006. Like Hatfield, McGregor's award came after a solid performance in his collegiate debut.

Hatfield and the Tigers will host Murray State in non-conference action on Tues., Feb. 24 at Gagliano Field, located at 2590 Mount Moriah, behind the Memphis Police Department's East Precinct and Halle Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.