BEREA, OHIO --  Baldwin Wallace University two-time All-Ohio Athletic Conference and two-time Division III All-Mideast Region first baseman/ designated hitter Hunter Handel (Akron/ Green) is this week's Ohio Athletic Conference Baseball Hitter of the Week.

It is Handel's first-ever OAC Hitter of the Week accolade, but marks the second straight week that a Yellow Jacket has earned the award and second straight week a graduate of Green High School has claimed the honor. Last week, Handel's high school and four-year BW teammate, senior pitcher/ shortstop Mark Zimmerman won the award.

Last week, in just one game, Handel slugged two home runs, including a grand slam, and drove in six runs as the Yellow Jackets (18-17, 10-4 OAC) beat Pitt-Greensburg, 19-5.  He hit a two-run homer in the top of the first inning to give BW a 2-0 lead and hammered his grand slam in a nine-run fourth that broke the game open and led to BW's sixth straight win and 10th victory in its last 12 contests.

Handel, who is batting .344 (42-for-122) with three homers and a team-leading 38 runs batted-in (RBI), is batting .455 during his last 15 games. This season, he also has 24 runs scored, 10 doubles, two triples and six stolen bases. Handel has a .533 slugging and .474 on-base average. He has drawn 21 bases-on-balls (walks) and hit-by-pitch a team-high nine times.

During his career, Handel is batting 351 (176-for-501) with 82 runs scorede, 32 doubles, five triples, 13 homers, 140 RBI and 10 stolen bases. He has a .513 career slugging and .433 career on-base average.

In addition to being a four-year baseball standout, Handel, a pre-physical therapy major, is a strong student who carries a 3.39 grade point average and is a candidate for CAPITAL ONE Academic All-District 7 honors.

The Yellow Jackets are back in action this Friday, May 6 when BW hosts OAC rival the University of Mount Union in a doubleheader at Fisher Field on Seniors' & Parents' Day.  The first game is at 1 p.m. BW also travels to New Concord on Sunday, May 8 to complete its OAC regular season when it plays a rescheduled twinbill at Muskingum University. The first game is at 1 p.m.