Southeast Missouri State's Gibson earns his third OVC Player of Week

Southeast Missouri State senior left fielder Derek Gibson was named the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week after batting .600 and collecting nine RBIs in the weekend series against Tennessee Tech that clinched the Redhawks' first outright conference baseball title since 2002.

Gibson, a three-time winner of the award this season, went 9 for 15, and his hits included four for extra bases -- a home run, two triples and a double.

The Redhawks won two of three games against their closest pursuer in the conference standings. Southeast claimed the first two games, with Gibson providing two hits, including a three-run double in a 12-8 victory Friday. He then went 3 for 4 with four RBIs in a 9-8 victory in 12 innings Saturday. He capped the weekend with a 4-for-5 performance Sunday.

Gibson's .419 batting average ranks second in the OVC. He is third in the conference with 65 RBIs.

Southeast finished its OVC regular-season schedule with a 23-7 record, claiming the top seed for next week's conference tournament in Jackson, Tennessee. The Redhawks, 33-17 overall, will visit Southeastern Conference opponent Vanderbilt in a nonconference game at 6 p.m. today.