April 15, 2002
VILLANOVA, PA. - On Monday, April 15, Villanova senior third baseman Brendan Mannix (Crofton, Md./ Archbishop Spalding) was named Co-Big East Player of the Week after helping lead the Villanova baseball team to a perfect 5-0 record last week including a 3-0 mark in Big East Conference play.
Mannix had a tremendous offensive week for the Wildcats, batting .526 overall (10-for-19) with nine runs scored, one double, four home runs and 13 RBI. In three Big East games, he was six-for-11at the plate with five runs scored, two home runs and seven RBI.
Mannix finished the week with two two-home run games to his credit. His first came on April 9 at Drexel when he posted a perfect three-for-three day with three runs scored, two home runs and a career-high six RBI. Mannix's second two-home run game came on Sunday against West Virginia, when he went two-for-four with two home runs and three RBI. Even more impressive is the fact that Villanova's smooth-swinging switch hitter blasted both home runs against Drexel from the left side of the plate and both long balls versus West Virginia from the right side.
In the Wildcats' first Big East game of the weekend against Big East leader Connecticut, Mannix recorded a two-for-four, three RBI performance in helping lead the `Cats to an 8-3 win. On Sunday in Villanova's sweep of West Virginia (W, 10-5, W, 6-1), he went a combined four-for-seven with five runs scored, two home runs and seven RBI.
Mannix has battled a number of injuries throughout his career, including a knee injury that kept him out 12 games earlier this season. Since coming back from that injury, he has been red hot at the plate. In 23 games this season, he is batting .362 (25-for-69) with 21 runs scored, seven doubles, eight home runs and 29 RBI. He has been even better in Big East Conference play. In 13 conference games thus far in 2002, Mannix is hitting .390 (16-for-41) with 11 runs scored, four doubles, six home runs and 23 RBI. He is among the Big East leaders in a number of categories for conference games. Mannix is first in home runs (6), RBI (23), slugging percentage (.927) and second in total bases (38) through Big East games of April 14.
