Pursell Named to D3baseball.com Team of the Week with .538 Batting Average

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- Cole Pursell (Sr./Jr., C, Oceanside, CA/El Camino HS) of Willamette University has been chosen for the D3baseball.com Team of the Week for his success in games played on Saturday, Feb. 23 and Sunday, Feb. 24. The Bearcats won two of three games against University of Puget Sound during the week. Willamette downed the Loggers 13-0 in the first game, before falling to Puget Sound in the second game, 12-2. The Bearcats took the series with a 10-5 victory in the third game.

Pursell hit .538 during the week (7 of 13) with three doubles and two home runs. He scored three runs and recorded five RBIs. He earned three hits twice, while recording at least one hit in all three games. He walked twice, was hit by a pitch and went 1 for 1 on stolen bases. He smacked two homers in the third game of the series. On defense, he was credited with 16 putouts with no errors.

This season, Pursell leads the Bearcats with a .481 batting average, an .889 slugging percentage, a .559 on-base percentage, five doubles and 10 RBIs. He ranks second on the team with two home runs and seven runs scored. He has accumulated 52 putouts and two assists on defense without an error.

After playing their first eight games away from home, the Bearcats (5-3 overall, 2-1 NWC) are scheduled to play three games at home this weekend against Lewis & Clark College. The NWC series will begin with two games on Saturday, March 2 at John Lewis Field starting at 11 a.m. (PST). The third game is set for Sunday, March 4 at 12 p.m.