UNLV roundup: Two baseball players net preseason honors
UNLV junior center fielder Kyle Isbel and sophomore shortstop Bryson Stott were named to Perfect Game’s preseason All-Mountain West team, a 15-member squad made up of at least one representative from each of the league’s seven teams.
Isbel, from Fontana, California, batted .290 with 12 doubles, six home runs, three triples and 26 RBIs last season while leading the Rebels in runs (42) and at-bats (231).
Stott, a Desert Oasis product who succeeded Isbel at the league’s Freshman of the Year last season, batted .294 with 11 doubles, two triples and one home run in 2017. He began his collegiate career with an 11-game hitting streak, during which he batted .447.
Isbel and Stott are two of four positional starters, along with Nick Ames (first base) and Nick Rodriguez (infield), returning from UNLV’s 2017 squad.
The Rebels also have five pitchers back who started six or more games in 2017, including Garrett Poole (14 games), Alan Strong (14) and Paul Richy (11).
In all, the Stan Stole-led team welcomes back 23 letterwinners and has 13 newcomers this season.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Junior center Katie Powell was named Mountain West Player of the Week for the second time in three weeks after averaging 24.5 points on 60-percent shooting and 9.5 rebounds in two victories that moved the Lady Rebels (13-8, 8-2) into sole possession of first place in the league.
The 6-foot-4-inch Powell scored a career-high 28 points on 11-for-18 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds in UNLV’s 80-53 win at San Jose State on Jan. 31.
On Saturday, she had 21 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high five steals in the Lady Rebels’ 77-54 victory over Boise State at the Thomas & Mack Center.
For the season, Powell is averaging 16.2 points and 9.3 rebounds and ranks second in Mountain West play in scoring (19.2 ppg) and rebounding (9.3 rpg).