Northwestern University Athletics
Goebbert Named Co-Big Ten Player of the Week
4/21/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 21, 2008
EVANSTON, Ill. -
Northwestern sophomore first baseman Jake Goebbert (Hampshire, Ill./Hampshire) has been named the co-Big Ten Player of the Week the Conference office announced Monday. It is the third such honor of his career after earning the award twice a year ago as a freshman.
He joins Mike Kalina who was named Player of the Week (Feb. 26) and Joe Muraski who was named co-Pitcher of the Week (April 14) as Wildcat individuals who have received weekly accolades from the Big Ten this season.
Goebbert, who shares this week's award with Illinois' Joe Bonadonna, posted a .615 batting average with a 1.154 slugging percentage in leading Northwestern to three wins at Iowa last weekend. It marked the Wildcats' first Big Ten road series win in nearly two years.
The left-handed hitting Goebbert notched an on-base percentage of .737 as he drew five walks and was hit by a pitch to go along with his eight hits in 13 at-bats. He went 3-for-4, including two doubles and a home run, with three RBI and four runs scored as NU won the series opener 13-5.
After being pitched to carefully in each of the next two games, he collected three hits in the finale to help the Wildcats win the series. Goebbert came to the plate with the score tied 6-6 in the top of the eighth inning and ripped a two-run single to account for the game-winning hit.
His four doubles against Iowa upped his season total to 17, four shy of the school single-season record of 21 set by Kent McGuire in 1977. Goebbert's current total ranks as a tie with Nate Hanson of Minnesota for tops in the Big Ten, while his eight two-baggers in conference play are also a league best.
In all games, Goebbert is also second in the Big Ten with a .761 slugging percentage, third with 83 total bases, fourth with a .493 on-base percentage and seven home runs and sixth with a .394 batting average and 36 runs batted in.
Northwestern (13-17, 8-8 Big Ten) returns to action at 3 p.m. Tuesday when it hosts Robert Morris (Ill.) at Rocky Miller Park. The Wildcats also host a four-game series with Ohio State beginning Friday.
