March 25
Perfect Game/Player of the Week:
Eli Putnam, JR, Davidson
While Davidson (9-13) got off to a sluggish start to 2025, they have gotten hot at the right time and are (5-1) in A10 conference play. They swept VCU last weekend thanks in large part to
Eli Putnam, the 6-4/215 infielder from Cabin John, Maryland. The righthanded hitting infielder, absolutely mashed all weekend for the Wildcats as they put up 49 runs in the 3-game series. Putnam is tremendously strong in the forearms and gets the ball elevated with ease, leaving the yard to all parts of the field. In 4-games last week, he collected 13 hits in 17 plate appearances, scoring 10 runs, driving in 14, with 2 doubles and 5-home runs. All 5 of his home runs came on the weekend at home and none of them were cheap. For the season, Putnam is slashing .371/.652/.418 with 4 doubles, 7 home runs and a total of 23 runs driven in. If Davidson is to make its first return appearance to the NCAA Tournament since their Super Regional team of 2017, it will have to ride the broad shoulders of
Eli Putnam and the rest of the offense.
Perfect Game/Pitcher of the Week:
Cam Bagwell, FR, UNC Wilmington
Just being in the rotation as a true-freshman at a program as storied as UNCW (12-12) is impressive by itself but throwing a perfect game in just his sixth career start is downright amazing. Cam Bagwell, the 6-5/205 RHP from Pineville, North Carolina accomplished this for the second time in program history, the first time since 1968 and what would be the Seahawks 10th no-hitter all-time. While it was a 7-inning game due to the run-rule, Bagwell only needed 80 pitches to navigate the 21-outs he collected on the day. Relying on the quality defense behind him, he only struck out three batters as he pumped 74% strikes with his fastball/slider combination. The freshman uses his length to leverage the ball downhill and tunnels his pitches very well. A model of consistency thus far in 2025, he is now (4-0) in six starts with a stellar 2.02 ERA as he has held opponents to an OBA of .187 and features a 24-to-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio. UNCW should be in contention for another CAA title and with Bagwell securing the backend of the rotation, they could find themselves in the NCAA Tournament once again.
March 18
Perfect Game/Player of the Week:
Aaron Whitley, GR, Richmond
The Richmond Spiders (18-2) are off to a sizzling start and are putting together one of the best seasons in program history. They are batting .359 as a team and are averaging just under 10 runs per game so far in 2025. Among several players that are experiencing career seasons thus far, Whitley, the 5-11/185 outfielder from Niskayuna, New York is impacting the game offensively in all aspects. With a true power/speed skillset, he has already stolen 17 bases in 18 attempts and is second on the club with 26 runs scored. In 4-games last week, Whitley collected 12 hits in 20 at-bats, including 2 doubles and 3 home runs, while swiping 4-bases, scoring 9 runs, and driving in 12 runs. For the season, the graduate student is batting .329 with 5 doubles, 5 home runs and a total of 21 RBIs. The Spiders are an offensive juggernaut and if they keep racking up the wins, they could make their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2003.
Perfect Game/Pitcher of the Week:
Aidan Knaak, SO, Clemson
The Clemson Tigers (19-2) have been sensationally consistent, and their body of work has earned them the No. 4 spot in our most recent Perfect Game Top-25 poll. Teams don’t get to this lofty a space without a legitimate ace to run out every Friday night and the 6-0/205 RHP from Fort Myers, Florida is just that. Knaak was a Freshman All-American in ‘24 and that led to significant pre-season accolades in 2025, and he has been more than fulfilled expectations. In his start against ACC foe, Notre Dame, he went 7.0 IP allowing just 1 hit, no runs, surrendering 1 walk while punching out 12 batters and facing just 2 over the minimum. The righty features a low-to-mid 90s fastball that he puts wherever he wants and that sets the stage for arguably the best changeup in the nation. For the season, Knaak is now (3-0) in 5 starts with a 3.86 ERA over 25.2 innings pitched where he has accumulated a 44:9 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Tigers are on a collision course with their first trip to Omaha since 2010 with Knaak leading the way every weekend.
March 11th
Perfect Game/Player of the Week:
Wehiwa Aloy, JR, Arkansas
The No. 8 Arkansas Razorbacks (15-1) are hitting on all cylinders right now. There was little doubt that the Razorbacks would pitch at an elite level in 2025, but there were some questions about the offensive firepower. Thanks to the Aloy brothers leading the charge, the Razorbacks averaged over 12-runs per game last week and Wehiwa was scintillating. The 6-2/200 infielder from Wailuku, Hawaii is living up to his pre-season expectations and using his elite skill set to build what looks like a career year ahead. In five games last week, the elder Aloy collected 12 hits in 19 plate appearances, scoring 10 runs, with 5 doubles, 5 home runs and he drove in 11 total runs. The ball is getting off his bat like never before and it is catching the attention of the MLB scouts. Through 16-games this season, he is now slashing .433/.850/.534 with 7 doubles, 6 round-trippers and 18 RBI. The Razorbacks are once again National Title contenders and if Aloy sustains this type of production, not only will he be a Day 1 draft pick, but his club may be the last team standing in Omaha.
Perfect Game/Pitcher of the Week:
Ethan Norby, SO, East Carolina
It was a historic few days for college pitching across the nation last weekend, with multiple stunning performances worthy of this week’s honor. Righties, Drew Horn for Middle Tennessee State and
Blake Gillespie at Charlotte, both spun no-hitters with 13 and 11 strikeouts respectively. While the Tennessee Volunteers used 5-pitchers to combine for the programs 9th no-hitter in school history. Amongst all that,
Ethan Norby stood out with his mind-blowing display of dominant, barrel-missing pitching that has rarely been seen in today’s game. The 5-9/200 lefty from Kernersville, North Carolina showed an explosive, riding fastball and wipeout slider to eliminate 19 hitters via the strikeout. To put it in perspective, Norby went 7.1 innings pitched on just 103 pitches, registered 86% of his outs by punchout and by the way didn’t issue a single free pass. He also started the game by striking out the first 9-hitters he faced. In his 4-starts so far this year, he has a 3.00 ERA, allowing an OBA of just .186, with an incredible 40:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his 24.0 innings pitched. It has been an unusual start to the season for the Pirates but with Norby anchoring the rotation, ECU should be ready to make a run at yet another American Athletic Conference title.
March 4
Perfect Game/Player of the Week:
Gavin Kilen, JR, Tennessee
The Tennessee Volunteers (11-0) just passed their toughest test of the year last weekend at the Astros College Foundation Classic and it was enough to vault them into the No. 1 spot in our Top-25 poll this week. Kilen, a Louisville transfer, has been a major reason the Vols have overwhelmed their opponents with yet another offensive juggernaut of a lineup. The 5-11/187 middle infielder from Milton, Wisconsin has always been a well-respected player and with his performance in the first 3-weeks of 2025 he is putting himself in position to be the front runner for the Golden Spikes Award at this point. In four games, last week he collected 11 hits in 18 at bats, scoring 9 runs, with a double, a triple, 5 home runs and a total of 8 runs batted in. While he has always been known for his bat-to-ball skills, added strength has unlocked his power stroke and he is just 2 home runs away from tying his home run total from all of last year. For the season, Killen is now slashing .486/1.270/.615 with 2 doubles, 3 triples, 7 home runs and 17 RBI. The Vols are once again National Title contenders and the way Kilen is playing, he has already pushed himself into 1st round consideration in the coming MLB Amateur Draft.
Perfect Game/Pitcher of the Week:
Ryan Rembisz, SR, Portland
In a game built around failure, perfection is rarely achieved but that is exactly what Rembisz accomplished for the Portland Pilots (???) a week ago. The 6-2/215 left-hander needed only 90 pitches to put up nothing but zeroes on his opponent’s offensive line score. His perfect effort was just the 21st nine-inning gem in the NCAA since 1959 and the first such feat in program history. Hailing from Woodinville, Washington, the senior lefty was an unlikely candidate for a perfect game since he had never recorded more than 13 outs in a single outing during his career. Typically, a pitcher that comes out of the bullpen, the 2024 season saw his heaviest workload with 19 appearances and a total of 29 innings pitched. But, on this glorious day in the northwest, Rembisz put it all together against Seattle as he dazzled with his 4-pitch mix. His 12 strikeouts he recorded during the outing is exactly half as many punchouts he recorded all of last year as well. On the young season, Rembisz is (2-0) with a 1.72 ERA over 4 appearances, registering a save while limiting opponents to a .115 OBA and a 16:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Pilots haven’t made an NCAA tournament appearance since 1991 but if they can build off this magic, maybe 2025 can be their year.
February 25th
Perfect Game/Player of the Week:
Paxton Kling, JR, Penn State
The Penn State Nittany Lions (5-1) are off to another outstanding start in Mike Gambino’s second year as head coach in Happy Valley. The program has a tremendous amount of momentum right now and landing a player like
Paxton Kling in the transfer portal is further proof of what they have going there. Kling, the former Perfect Game High School All-American and LSU transfer, is off to an incredible start to the season, slashing .440/1.080/.533 with 5 home runs and 9 RBI thus far. The 6-2/210 Roaring Spring, Pennsylvania native is an elite athlete with twitchy actions, and it all seems to be coming together for him and his club at the right time. In 3-games last weekend, he collected 7 hits in 13 at-bats, including a double, 4 home runs and 6 RBI. Kling is setting himself up nicely for this year’s MLB Draft, but it feels like he and the Nittany Lions will be making a trip to the NCAA Tournament before that happens.
Perfect Game/Pitcher of the Week:
Trystan Levesque, GR, Rhode Island
While the Rhode Island Rams (3-4) currently have a losing record, they have made quite the splash on the national landscape in the first two weeks of the season. On Opening Weekend, they won the rubber match with William & Mary by an astronomical score of 36-22 in just 7 innings. This past weekend they went to Oregon and out-slugged the Ducks 12-11 on Friday night before Levesque took the mound in Game 2 of the doubleheader. The 5-10/207 southpaw went out and pitched what could be the most epic no-decision in program history. He ended up going 10 innings in the start, only allowing 3 hits, no runs, 2 walks and he struck out 9 batters on his way to 119 total pitches. An injury ended his season after just two outings in 2024 and it appears Levesque is going to make the most of his last go-round with the Rams. Heading into this year he had made 51 career appearances, 38 of those were starts and he put together a sparkling 232:56 K-to-BB ratio. Rhode Island looks like they will be a real force in the A10 and maybe Levesque can help lead them back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016.
February 17
Perfect Game/Player of the Week
Marek Houston, IF, Wake Forest
The Demon Deacons are off to a perfect (4-0) start to the season and their junior shortstop has done most of the heavy lifting thus far. The 6-3/205 shortstop from Nokomis, Florida dedicated himself to adding more physicality over the offseason and the results are paying huge dividends already. Using his compact swing and added strength at contact, Houston is launching balls out of “the Couch” at a record breaking pace. In the first 4-games of the season his slash line is .714/1.429/.789 with a double, 3-home runs, 2-stolen bases and he has driven in a ridiculous 13 runs already. With a defensive skillset that was ahead of his hit tool most of his career, if the bat stays on track Houston is putting himself in great position to be an early Day 1 selection in the coming MLB Draft.
Perfect Game/Pitcher of the Week:
Dax Whitney, RHP, Oregon State
It’s not very common to see a true freshman open the season in the rotation for a program at the level of the Beavers. But
Dax Whitney is no common freshman and was a big part of his team’s perfect (3-0) start to the year. At 6-5/204 the Blackfoot, Idaho native looks the part on the bump and uses a super abbreviated arm path and comprehensive repertoire to produce explosive stuff. His riding fastball is reported to have peaked at 98 mph and cruised in the mid-90s throughout his first career start. He backed that up with an abrupt mid-80s slider and heavy downer of a curve in the upper-70s. All three offerings are legit swing and miss pitches and he held his velocity deep into the outing. In his first career start he went 5.0 IP on just 84 pitches, allowing 4 hits, no runs, 1 free pass while striking out 8 batters. Oregon State are once again national title contenders and they are fortunate to have landed Whitney on campus.