Junior Ryan Fritze (Woodbury, Minn./Woodbury [Des Moines Area CC]) was rewarded for his seven shutout innings against Youngstown State on Sunday with a Horizon League Pitcher of the Week award on Monday. 

The righty scattered three hits and punched out a season-high nine batters in Valpo's 5-0 series-clinching win over the Penguins at Emory G. Bauer Field. Fritze enjoyed his most dominant outing in a Crusader uniform yet. Displaying top-notch command, he did not allow a hit until the fifth.

This week's honor represents the second in as many weeks for a Valpo hurler. Junior Dalton Lundeen (Streamwood, Ill./Streamwood) notched a Pitcher of the Week Award last Monday after shutting out the Milwaukee Panthers over nine stellar innings. Coincidentally, the pitching staff's aggregate earned-run average has fallen from 5.45 to its current 4.65 mark over the last 15 games.

Valpo (21-25, 15-11 Horizon) will host Purdue on Tuesday at Emory G. Bauer Field at 3:00 p.m. CT before traveling to Dayton to take on Wright State (34-14, 18-8 Horizon) in a three-game series beginning Thursday.