May 14, 2007

CINCINNATI - Xavier's Michael Lucas tossed his first shutout of the season and held visiting La Salle to only two hits on the afternoon to earn his first Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Week honor of the season. Lucas is the second XU pitcher to receive the honor this season as he helped the Musketeers move closer to an A-10 Championship bid and their fourth series sweep of the season.

Lucas, now 3-6 on the season, went the distance for the second time this year and picked up his first shutout in 2007 after holding the Explorers to just two hits in the game. The junior only allowed one hit in the fourth and fifth innings, while tying a career high with eight strikeouts on the afternoon. The junior currently leads the team in innings pitched (81.1) and strikeouts (57).

The sweep give the Xavier squad a place in the program record books as they became the first team to sweep four conference opponents in a season. The previous mark of three sweeps in a conference season was set by the 2002 XU team that advanced to the A-10 Championship and was also the last time the Musketeers made an appearance in the tournament.

Xavier will take start a five-game stretch to finish out the season on Tuesday afternoon. XU will travel to Toledo on Tuesday for a 3:00 pm start with the Rockets. The Musketeers will send senior Dan Graham to the mound. After the game at Toledo, XU will return home to face Butler on Wednesday afternoon before welcoming UMass to Hayden Field for the final A-10 series of the season.