Monday, April 8, 2002

ABBATE NAMED COMMONWEALTH PLAYER OF THE WEEK;
PETERS EARNS PITCHER OF THE WEEK HONORS

ANNVILLE, PA --- Senior outfielder Michael Abbate (South Plainfield, NJ/Bishop Ahr HS) and sophomore pitcher/outfielder Greg Peters (Hellertown, PA/Saucon Valley HS) of the Moravian College baseball team have been named the Commonwealth Conference Player and Pitcher of the Week for their performances last week.

<Abbate led the Greyhounds to a 4-2 record last week including a 3-2 Commonwealth Conference mark and surpasses two milestone at Moravian, one of which no other Moravian player has reached.  Abbate hit .524 last week with 11 hits in 21 at-bats from the leadoff position.  He also walked four times for an on-base percentage of .615.  Abbate added three steals, two sacrifice bunts and he scored nine runs.  When Abbate crossed the plate in the fifth inning of Moravian's 13-9 victory at Lebanon Valley, he became the first Moravian player to score 100 runs in a career.  In the Greyhounds, 7-6, nine-inning loss to the Flying Dutchmen, Abbate became the seventh player in Moravian history to reach 100 career hits with a single in the sixth inning.  He currently has 102 hits and 105 runs.

Peters, an outfielder and pitcher, earned a victory and a save in two relief appearances in Commonwealth Conference action last week and he was also hot at the plate in both games and for the entire week.  Peters worked two scoreless innings to earn a save in Moravian's 6-3 victory at Susquehanna University and he also drove in the final run of the game.  In Moravian's victory at Lebanon Valley College, Peters tossed six innings in relief to earn the victory.  He allowed three-run (two earned) on seven hits and four walks.  At the plate, Peters gave Moravian its first lead of the game with a three runs homerun in the second inning.  For the week, Peters hit .368 with seven hits in 19 at-bats, including a double, two triples and a homerun and he added 11 RBIs.

Moravian is 11-13 overall this season and will return to action on Tuesday, April 9th in a non-conference game at Delaware Valley College beginning at 3:30 p.m.