MAST WATER TECHNOLOGY ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Nathan Mowry

Benton senior named Six Rivers West baseball Player of the Year

Senior pitcher/infielder Nathan Mowry was named the Six Rivers West Player of the Year after leading Shullsburg/Benton to a 23–2 record and another conference title. - photo by Photo by Tom Gunnell / Republican Journal

Nathan Mowry 6-25-19 — Senior pitcher/infielder Nathan Mowry was named the Six Rivers West Player of the Year after leading Shullsburg/Benton to a 23–2 record and another conference title. - photo by Photo by Tom Gunnell / Republican Journal

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Swnews4u.com Athlete of the Week is a web-only feature that will publish each Thursday throughout the calendar year.

Nathan Mowry, Sr., P/IF, Shullsburg/Benton baseball
Senior Nathan Mowry was named the 2019 Six Rivers West Player of the Year and earned first-team All-SRW honors for a third straight time asa pitcher after leading the Miner–Zephyrs to a 23–2 overall record while winning the conference title with a 13–0 mark in league play. Mowry also received All-SRW honorable mention this year as a third baseman.
On the mound, Mowry posted an 8–2 mark and one save in 13 appearances with a 0.92 ERA, 79 strikeouts and 14 walks in 61 innings pitched. In league play, the Benton senior went 7–0 with a save and a league-low 0.16 ERA. He also batted .339 on the season with six doubles, one home run, 27 RBI and 14 runs scored.

HONORABLE MENTION (in alphabetical order):
Stryker Fitzsimons, Sr., Darlington boys basketball
Fitzsimons ended his prep basketball career on a winning note, scoring a team-high 15 points and pulling down six rebounds with an assist and a blocked shot to help lead the Division 4 White All-Stars to an 82–66 victory over the Red All-Stars in the Division 4 Boys Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association All-Star game Saturday, June 16 at JustAGame Fieldhouse in Wisconsin Dells.

Gavin Gillitzer, Sr., P/OF, Prairie du Chien baseball
Gillitzer was named the Southwest Wisconsin Conference Player of the Year for a second striaght season after leading the SWC champion Blackhawks to a 19–3 mark, a 8–2 record in conference play and a berth in the WIAA D3 sectional finals. Gillitzer finished his senior year with a 3–2 record, a team-best 1.75 ERA, 62 strikeouts and 12 walks in 48 innings ace the Blackhawks' ace. He threw a six-inning no-hitter in an 11–0 win at Platteville on May 9, and earned an eight-inning victory over Viroqua, 2–1, in the D3 sectional semifinals on June 4. He was also a starter in centerfield when he was not on the mound and one of the team's top hitters.

Grady Gorgen, Jr., P/OF, Mineral Point baseball
Gorgen was recently named the 2019 Southwest Wisconsin Activities League Player of the Year after leading Mineral Point (27–1, 14–0 SWAL) to the SWAL title and a runner-up finish in the WIAA Division 4 state tournament. Gorgen finished the year with a 9–0 record, a 1.22 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 51 2/3 inning pitched as the Pointers ace. He also batted .430 (37-for-86), which was third on the team, with seven doubles, one triple, 20 RBI, 47 runs scored and a team-high 34 stolen bases and 16 walks.

Liam Stumpf, So., P/IF, Mineral Point baseball
Stumpf had one his best games of the season in Mineral Point's 6–2 victory over Belmont in the WIAA Division 4 state semifinals last Wednesday (June 12) to lead the second-ranked Pointers (27–1) to a berth in the D4 title game. He surrendered just one unearned run and struck out 11 batters over five innings to earn the pitching victory in his first turn on the mound in nearly four weeks, and helped his own cause at the plate by driving in three runs with a solo home run and a two-run triple, and scoring the other three runs himself.