SAN DIEGO - UC San Diego junior baseball pitcher Justin Donatella and freshman swimmer Stephanie Sin were named Wednesday as a San Diego Hall of Champions (SDHOC) Stars of the Month for February.
Donatella had an incredible first month of the 2015 season for the 28th-ranked UCSD baseball program. The 6-foot-6 product of Saugus posted a 3-1 record and 0.36 ERA with 33 strikeouts over 25 complete innings in four starts. The ERA and strikeout totals lead the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). He won his last three starts, all in CCAA play, after taking the loss at home against fifth-ranked 2014 national runner-up Colorado Mesa in his debut on Feb. 6. Donatella threw a total of 21 shutout frames in those three league outings, and completed the month on a streak of 23.2 innings without a run allowed. He saved his best for last, twirling a one-hit, nine-inning shutout at Cal State East Bay last Friday, Feb. 27, with a season-high 11 strikeouts on just 98 pitches. It marked his first career complete game, and led UCSD (13-7, 9-3 CCAA) to a third straight CCAA series victory. Donatella's next outing is slated for primetime under the lights at Triton Ballpark in La Jolla this Friday night, March 6, against 20th-ranked archrival Chico State and its All-American right-hander, Luke Barker. First pitch is set for 6 p.m.
Sin was the Female Co-Swimmer of the Meet at the 2015 Pacific Collegiate Swimming & Diving Conference (PCSC) Championships in La Mirada, Feb. 18-21, as the joint top point-getter with 92 from her two wins and one second-place finish. The true freshman out of Chatsworth won her first conference title in the 1000-yard freestyle in meet- and school-record fashion (10:07.10) in her PCSC debut on Feb. 18, and added a first-place effort in the 1650 free on Feb. 21, also in school-record time (16:55.65). In between, Sin was second in the 500 free (4:57.20). The Tritons, ranked No. 4 in the NCAA Division II, as a team earned their seventh straight PCSC title. Sin subsequently gained qualification on Feb. 25 to the 2015 NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., March 11-14. She and 19 teammates will travel to Indianapolis this Sunday, March 8.
Donatella and Sin now make four UCSD student-athletes who have earned Star of the Month accolades from the SDHOC for the 2015 calendar year. Sin's teammate, Austine Lee, and fellow sophomore Adam Klie of the men's basketball program, were honored for January.
Donatella and Sin were among eight amateur athletes named for February.
The San Diego Hall of Champions honors outstanding athletes from San Diego, as well as athletes who have achieved stardom for local teams.
ABOUT THE HALL OF CHAMPIONS
The SDHOC is an undisputed national leader in recognition of amateur, collegiate and professional sports excellence; youth sports-based education; and sports memorabilia exhibition. The Hall was launched by the Breitbard Athletic Foundation, which was founded in 1946 to recognize significant athletic achievement in San Diego. Through its vigilant focus on the community of San Diego and its betterment, SDHOC has developed an outstanding sports museum that enhances the quality of life for San Diegans through sports. For more information, please visit www.sdhoc.com.
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