LA JOLLA, Calif. - UC San Diego's junior right-handed ace Justin Donatella was named Tuesday as both the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Baseball Pitcher of the Week, as well as the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) West Region Pitcher of the Week, for Feb. 23-March 1.
Donatella tossed a one-hit, complete-game shutout at Cal State East Bay last Friday afternoon, Feb. 27, as then-17th-ranked UCSD blanked the Pioneers in Hayward, 5-0, on its way to a third straight three-games-to-one series victory to begin the CCAA schedule. The 6-foot-6 product of Saugus struck out a season-high 11 without a walk, facing two over the minimum with East Bay managing just a two-out single in the fifth and a leadoff hit-by-pitch in the seventh. Donatella retired the first 14 batters in a row prior to that single in the fifth. He was credited unofficially with throwing 98 pitches in what was his first career complete game, also notching eight groundouts and eight flyouts. Donatella handled all four of his defensive chances cleanly with three assists on comebackers, and a putout.
Donatella fell two strikeouts short of his career high of 13, which also happens to be UCSD's program record for the Division II era. Donatella's effort did, however, mark the first one-hit, nine-inning shutout by an individual Triton pitcher in the Division II era, since 2001. Former standouts Tim Shibuya (7.0 IP) and Elias Tuma (2.0) previously combined on a one-hit, nine-inning shutout in another defeat of Cal State East Bay, 1-0, on Feb. 19, 2011. Five Triton arms teamed up on a nine-inning one-hitter on Feb. 5, 2002, in a 3-1 victory at crosstown rival Point Loma. The only no-hitter for UCSD's Division II days came from Trevor Decker against then-top-ranked Cal State Stanislaus, a 6-0 home triumph in seven innings back on March 14, 2009.
Donatella (3-1) has won all three of his CCAA starts without allowing a single run in 21 complete frames. His overall shutout streak has extended to 23.2 innings, as the current CCAA leader in both ERA (0.36) and strikeouts (33).
This is the first CCAA weekly honor of Donatella's career. He is the second Triton honoree already for just the first month of the 2015 season, after senior left-hander Trevor Scott picked up the year's first selection back on Feb. 3. Sophomore outfielder Jack Larsen was also announced as the CCAA Player of the Week that day.
Donatella is the first Triton hurler to pick up NCBWA West Region Pitcher of the Week accolades since former ace Ryan Goodbrand earned back-to-back awards to begin the 2013 campaign, on Feb. 12 and Feb. 19 of that season.
Donatella is next slated to face 20th-ranked archrival and reigning West Region champion Chico State, and All-American Luke Barker, at Triton Ballpark this Friday night, March 6, at 6 p.m., kicking off a big four-game series in the CCAA and Division II with a marquee mound match-up. UCSD is now ranked No. 28. Barker, a senior right-hander who has transitioned from the closer role after notching 18 saves a year ago, was the previous CCAA and NCBWA West Region Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 24 after similarly throwing a complete game with 11 strikeouts.
Donatella and the Tritons will also take on Andrew Carrillo, the Chico State second baseman who garnered CCAA Player of the Week distinction Tuesday, and leads the league with a .567 batting average. Ben Gamba, the designated hitter for Holy Names, is the NCBWA West Region Player of the Week.
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