GREENVILLE — Following the conclusion of its 2011 season, the East Carolina baseball team continues to be ranked in the national polls when it garnered a No. 29 ranking by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Tuesday afternoon.  The Pirates (41-21), who made their third regional final in four NCAA appearances under Head Coach Billy Godwin, ended the season with a 13-1 loss to overall No. 1 seed Virginia in the Charlottesville Regional on June 5.  ECU also received votes in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches’ poll for the 12th-straight week when the publication revealed its final poll back on May 30. This week’s ranking also marks the fifth time they have appeared in the polls in 2011.  NCBWA will release its final poll at the conclusion of the 65th annual College World Series (CWS) which gets underway this Saturday, June 18 when Vanderbilt faces North Carolina at 1 p.m.   Pirates In The Polls In 2011 Baseball America: No. 25 (May 23); No. 23 (May 30). USA Today/Coaches’: Received Votes (March 14 to May 30). NCBWA: Received Votes (Preseason to April 18; May 2-9); No. 29 (April 25); No. 30 (May 16); No. 25 (May 23); No. 27 (May 30); No. 27 (June 6); No. 29 (June 14).

McDonald named CPL Hitter-of-the-Week
Freshman Batted A League-Best .636 With Three Doubles  East Carolina freshman Chase McDonald has been named Coastal Plain League Rawlings Hitter-of-the-Week according to an announcement by the leagues website Tuesday afternoon. McDonald batted a league-best .636 (14-for-22) with three doubles and a home run during his first full week with the Morehead City Marlins. The Greenville, N.C. native had a career game in the CPL for the Marlins on June 12 going 5-for-7 with a grand slam and drove in seven runs in a 16-8 rout of the Wilmington Sharks. On the week he scored five runs, drove in nine total runs – the second-most in the league – and was walked once. He also was first in the league in on-base percentage (.625), second in slugging percentage (.909), and third in total bases (20).
During his freshman season with the Pirates, McDonald sported a .314 average (59-for-188) with four round trippers, 11 doubles and 31 RBI in 55 games (49 starts). He was named to the Conference USA All-Freshman Team and capped his rookie season at the Charlottesville Regional where he batted .438 (7-for-16) with five RBI on his way to All-Tournament honors.
During the regional he ranked among the leaders in home runs (t-1st), RBI (t-1st), total bases (t-1st) and hits (t-2nd). Against Navy he smacked his first career grand slam lifting the Pirates to a 6-1 win.
McDonald is one of 16 Pirates playing summer ball and one of seven playing in the Coastal Plain League.