SAN DIEGO – San Diego State right-handed pitcher Omar Serrano (Downey, Calif./Downey HS) was one of 11 student-athletes named to Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's list of National Players of the Week, powered by www.Diamond-Sports.com, for the period ending May 21. The announcement was made by the publication's office on Monday in Tucson, Arizona.
A native of Downey, California, Serrano came through with a clutch performance in the Aztecs' home finale against New Mexico last Saturday, helping the Scarlet and Black clinch a share of the Mountain West regular-season championship.
Serrano collected his first career victory, tossing 6 1/3 innings of scoreless relief, which allowed SDSU to rally from a 6-1 deficit vs. the Lobos and ultimately prevail by an 8-6 tally.
Serrano posted eight strikeouts, which marked his second-highest total of the season, yielding just one hit and a pair of walks. In all, the Aztec sophomore limited UNM to a scant .053 batting average and did not allow a runner past second base during his stint.
After giving up a leadoff single in the fourth inning, Serrano retired 10 straight batters before issuing a walk with one out in the top of the seventh.
In addition to his CBN honor, Serrano was recognized by D1Baseball.com on its list of top 40 national pitchers, tying for the website's third-highest game score of the week with 77 points.
For the season, Serrano (1-5, 5.43 ERA, 62 SO, 53.0 IP) leads the Mountain West in fewest hits allowed (46) and strikeouts per nine innings (10.53) while ranking fourth in hits allowed per nine innings (7.81).
Serrano and the second-seeded Aztecs open the MW Championship against No. 3 seed Air Force on Thursday, May 25, on Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium in Fresno, California. First pitch is set for 1:30 p.m. PT, and the contest will air live on the Mountain West Network.