Olson Named NE-10 Player of the Week

Norway, Maine, native selected for second time this season, fifth of career

RINDGE, N.H. (April 24, 2006) - Franklin Pierce junior All-American Garrett Olson (Norway, Maine/Oxford Hills) was selected as the Northeast-10 Conference's Player of the Week this afternoon.

Olson, who earns the weekly honor for the second time this season (fifth career), led Franklin Pierce to a 6-1 week as he hit .414 (12-for-29) with three runs scored, three doubles, a triple, two stolen bases and nine RBI. He also slugged .586, posted a .452 on-base percentage and hit safely in all seven games. Olson was a combined 5-for-8 with two doubles and two RBI in a doubleheader at Pace University, ranked sixth in the Northeast Region, on Wednesday, including 3-for-4 with two doubles in the Ravens game one victory. He batted 2-5 with a double, triple, stolen base and four RBI in Thursday's win at American International College. Olson closed out the week by going a combined 3-for-7 with a pair of walks and an RBI in a doubleheader sweep of Southern New Hampshire on Saturday.

Olson is second on the team with a .378 batting average (5^th NE-10) to go with 49 runs scored (1^st), 13 doubles (4^th), five triples (1^st), eight home runs (3^rd) and 45 RBI (1^st). He has also stolen 16 bases (3^rd), posted a .665 slugging percentage (1^st) and .444 on-base percentage (7^th).

Olson is a team-best 7-for-9 (.778) with the bases loaded this spring (including a Division II-record matching two grand slams in one game earlier this season), leads the team with 21 multiple-hit and 10 multi-RBI games this season and is second on the team with 13 two-out RBI.

Olson became just the fifth member of Franklin Pierce's 200-hit club with a first inning single in game one of Saturday's doubleheader sweep of Southern New Hampshire. He is also second all-time at the College with 146 career runs scored and fourth with 42 career steals.

Olson was tabbed the preseason Player of the Year in Division II by Baseball America in February and named the No. 2 rated Pro Prospect in Division II by the publication. He was a consensus All-American in 2005, selected to the second team by the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and earning third team honors from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). Olson was the lone underclassman selected to any of the three ABCA All-America teams.

Franklin Pierce (32-9, 17-5 NE-10), ranked No. 16 in this week's Collegiate Baseball magazine Division II poll, has won ten of its last 11 and matched its program record for wins in a season with 32, reaching the 30-win mark for the fifth-straight season. The Ravens are back in action on Tuesday, after two straight rainouts, when it visits Saint Anselm College at 3:30 p.m.