STANDISH, ME – A pair of Saint Joseph's College baseball players have claimed GNAC Weekly Honors. Senior pitcher Chad Rafferty (Keene, N.H.) has been chosen as the Pitcher of the Week and junior right fielder Alex Lorenc (Nanuet, N.Y.) has claimed Player of the Week accolades.

Rafferty, the reigning GNAC Pitcher of the Year and D3baseball.com Preseason First Team All-America honoree, opened the season with a complete-game shutout, fanning eight while allowing five hits and no walks over seven frames in a 3-0 win over Ripon College on Sunday.

For Rafferty, the GNAC Pitcher of the Week award is the third of his career.

Lorenc is off to a hot start to his junior season, as the third-year starter hit .667 (8-12) with a run, a double and seven RBI during the Monks' 4-0 start to the 2013 campaign. Lorenc opened the year by going 6-8 with a run, a two-bagger and six RBI in a twinbill sweep over Rhode Island College on Saturday and was 2-3 in a 1-0 triumph over Ripon College on Sunday.

The Player of the Week accolade is a first for Lorenc, who was a two-time Rookie of the Week honoree as a freshman. 

Saint Joseph's, currently ranked 9th in the country according to the latest NCBWA/D3baseball.com Weekly Poll, will face off against Keene State College on Wednesday at 6:00 PM.

Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 350-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.