By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Mac Danford, a junior utility man on the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team, secured Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week accolades today for the second time during the 2023 campaign.
A Grand Ridge, Fla. native, Danford becomes the first Skyhawk representative to win the OVC Player of the Week award twice in a single season. UT Martin has also set a school record for most OVC Player of the Week recipients (three) in a single season as Danford also won the award on April 17 and Andrew Fernandez nabbed the honor on March 27.
Danford helped the Skyhawks take two out of three games at OVC rival Lindenwood last week, giving UT Martin its fifth OVC series win in seven opportunities. He hit .533 (8-for-15) with a pair of home runs – both go-ahead shots that gave the Skyhawks lead it would not relinquish. He drove in a team-best nine runs and scored five times while adding a pair of doubles, a stolen base and a 1.067 slugging percentage.
After tying a career-high with four hits with a pair of RBI’s and a run scored in the series opener on Friday, Danford provided the big blast in each of UT Martin’s victories. His three-run round-tripper on Saturday broke a 3-3 tie in the top of the seventh inning as he finished with a pair of hits. The following day, he added another multi-hit performance – this time crushing a three-run homer in the top of the first, breaking the scoreless tie and setting the tone for an 18-1 triumph. He wrapped up Sunday with four RBI’s and three runs scored, also adding a run-scoring double in the sixth inning.
Danford has become one of the most feared hitters in the OVC as he ranks in the top-10 in league play in doubles (8, first), batting average (.442, second), hits (34, third), total bases (59, sixth), slugging percentage (.766, seventh) and on-base percentage (.482, 10th). Overall, he ranks fifth in the OVC with a .348 batting average while sporting a team-best .589 slugging percentage behind 19 extra-base hits over 141 at-bats in the Skyhawk lineup.
UT Martin closes out the home portion of their schedule this week with four games at Skyhawk Field, starting with a 4 p.m. matchup tomorrow against Alabama A&M.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information