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Balint, Swindle, Byrnes & Stephenson as MaxPreps/NFCA National H.S. Players of the Week

March 31, 2014 by MaxPreps, AZPreps365


LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Sophomore pitcher/first baseman Maggie Balint (Avon Grove (West Grove, Pa.) H.S), senior infielder Jordan Swindle (Evangel Christian (Alabaster, Ala.) H.S.), junior outfielder/third baseman Alexis Byrnes (Lockwood (Lockwood, Mo.) H.S) and freshman pitcher/utility player Lainey Stephenson (Veritas Prep (Phoenix, Ariz.) have been selected as the MaxPreps/NFCA National High School Players of the Week for games played over March 24-30.

North Region

Balint helped the Red Devils to a 3-0 start to the 2014 campaign, batting .400 (4-for-10) with two extra-base hits and two RBIs while picking up all three victories from the circle. Over the trio of pitching appearances, she registered a 0.00 ERA and struck out an impressive 37 hitters over just 14.1 total innings. Arguably her finest effort came during an 8-3 triumph over Downingtown East (Pa.) as Balint struck out 14 in a complete game while going 2-for-4 at the dish with a double, a triple and an RBI.

South Region

Swindle powered the Lightning offensively last week, batting .643 (9-for-14) with nine runs scored, four stolen bases, six doubles and 11 RBIs. Her top performance came against Ezekiel Academy on March 24 as she went 3-for-4 at the plate with three tallies, two two-baggers and five RBIs. Overall for the year, Swindle is hitting at a .549 clip with 33 runs scored, 17 doubles, three HR's and 30 RBIs.

South Central Region

During the Tigers' opening eight match-ups to the 2014 season, Byrnes batted .611 (11-for-18) with nine runs scored, four doubles, a remarkable 13 stolen bases and 13 RBIs. Included in her week was a 3-for-3 performance with a double, three thefts and a trio of RBIs during a 16-3 win over Hurley (Mo.), and a 2-for-2, three-RBI effort in a 20-4 rout of Fordland (Mo.). Byrnes posted at least one base hit, one RBI and one steal in seven of Lockwood's eight contests.

West Region

Stephenson led the way for the Falcons from both the circle and at the plate, posting a perfect 7-0 pitching mark with a 0.00 ERA, consecutive no-hitters and 98 strikeouts over 41 innings while also batting .545 (12-for-22) with three doubles, a triple, a HR and 10 RBIs. She tossed her consecutive no no's (now has five for the 2014 season) during wins over Coronado (was 4-for-5 at the plate with three RBIs) and Coolidge (Ariz.), striking out 13 and 12 in those match-ups, respectively. Stephenson wrapped up her week with back-to-back 17-strikeout efforts in complete game shutouts over Arizona Lutheran Academy and Ray (Ariz.). For the season she is a perfect 13-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 177 K's over 72 frames, while also batting .652 with 17 extra-base hits and 27 RBIs.

MaxPreps.com, the official high school statistical provider of the NFCA, provides all statistics for the NFCA High School Player of the Week award. To nominate a player for the award, the coach must enter his or her athlete's game stats into MaxPreps.com by Sunday evening to be eligible for that week's award.

The MaxPreps/NFCA High School Players of the Week will be announced on NFCA.org every Monday during the spring season, with one representative chosen from each of five separate high school regions (if there are enough nominations to consider). During the fall campaign, just a single player will be selected representing all participating regions.

MaxPreps is a free stat tool that is available to high school coaches across the country and is one of the most recognized and respected high school athletics web sites on the internet. Coaches who enter their team's stats on Max Preps will not only be nominating their players for this award, but they will be getting their team's information out to thousands of high school sports fans, as well as college coaches across the country.

To obtain a coach's login, please contact: kwagner@maxpreps.com or call (800) 329-7324 x5153.