May 6, 2008

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Senior shortstop Derek Shunk (Yardley, Pa.) has been named the BIG EAST Player of the Week for games played April 28-May 4, it was announced by the conference yesterday. This is the first time this season and third time in his career that Shunk has received the honor.

Villanova won all four games it played last week, including a midweek win over Penn State and a sweep of Pittsburgh in a three-game conference series over the weekend. The wins over the Panthers moved the Wildcats into a tie with Rutgers for eighth place and the final playoff spot in the league standings. Both teams have six regular season conference games remaining.

Shunk was the top Villanova hitter in the four games last week, batting .471 (8-for-17) for the week with three runs scored and six RBI. He had at least one hit in all four games he played in and registered multi-hit games in all three of the contests against Pittsburgh. Shunk also had a double, a stolen base and three walks for the week to post a .524 on-base percentage.

In the first game against the Panthers, Shunk singled home a run in the first inning and the Wildcats never trailed in an eventual 4-3 victory. He added two hits, two runs scored and two RBI the next day in an 8-4 victory. In the series finale, Shunk went 3-for-5 with a double, two runs batted in and a run scored as Villanova completed the sweep with a 16-10 victory.

For the season, Shunk leads the team in hitting with a .356 average, 64 hits and 12 doubles. He is also tied for the squad lead with 41 RBI. So far this season, he has broken the school's career records for hits, games played and at-bats. Shunk and classmate Ryan Arcadia (Upper Saddle River, N.J.) have also become just the third and fourth players in program history with at least 200 hits and 100 walks.

The Wildcats visit Rutgers for a three-game series this weekend on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.