Brett Shweky // Staff Writer
Freshman pitcher Nick MacDonald earned Conference USA Pitcher of the Week honors, following his dominating performance in the 5-1 victory against the Manhattan Jaspers on Sunday, March 5.
The right-hander retired the first 11 of 12 opposing batters he faced before Manhattan secured its first hit in the top of the fourth. MacDonald pitched a career-high 7 ⅔, where he restricted the Jaspers to one earned run off just two hits.
The freshman struck out nine Manhattan batters to record his first collegiate win, in only his second career start.
MacDonald said that with it being one of his first starts in his career, the award had some greater meaning.
“Of course it’s special. It was special because it really was my second start in my collegiate career,” said MacDonald. “It doesn’t happen, however, if my team doesn’t play at the high-level they’ve been playing at.”
Currently leading the Panther pitching staff with a staggering 1.42 ERA, MacDonald has been able to limit opposing batters to a .143 batting average. MacDonald, in 12.2 innings pitched this season, has only given up two-earned runs and has collected 16 strikeouts.
Prior to attending FIU, the freshman played for West Broward High School and Charles W. Flanagan High School. During his tenure at Flanagan, MacDonald earned team MVP honors his senior season and was also named Pitcher of the Year in 2015 and 2016. The right-hander was highly sought after by Alabama State, Tennessee, Kentucky and the crosstown rival Miami Hurricanes.
When asked about his decision and why he decided to attend FIU, MacDonald said head coach Mervyl Melendez was the deciding factor in his becoming a Panther.
“To be honest with you Mervyl Melendez was really my deciding factor in my decision to attend FIU,” said MacDonald. “I wasn’t directly recruited by him, but his assistant was the one that recruited me and once we finally met I fell in love with the way he coached almost immediately.”
Coming up for the (9-7) Panthers, the team will travel to Deland, Florida, to take on the (7-10) Stetson Hatters for a two-game mid-week series. The starting pitcher for the two-game series have not been slated; however, MacDonald remains one of the top options for the Panthers. The first game of the series will be on March 14 at 6:30 p.m., while the second game will be on March 15 at 6 p.m
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