Blanch and Petro Named HCAC Athletes of the Week

GREENWOOD, IND. – Defiance College baseball player Dave Blanch (Alliston, Ont., Can. /Banting Memorial) and track and field athlete Josh Petro (Ocala, Fla. /The Villages) have been named Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference "Athletes of the Week."

Blanch helped lead the Yellow Jackets to a 3-0 series sweep of Franklin (Ind.) College this past weekend (Apr. 9-10). He pitched a complete nine-inning game on Saturday, Apr. 9 to record his fourth win of the season. Blanch allowed just two hits and no runs to go along with four strikeouts.

Petro competed on Sunday (Apr. 10) at Ohio Wesleyan and led the Yellow Jacket throwers with a fourth-place finish in the hammer. Petro recorded a toss of 146' 7". He also competed in the discus and finished in 11th after a mark of 116' 10".

Blanch and the baseball team will return to action on Wednesday, Apr. 13 when they host Bluffton University in a HCAC single game at Craig A. Rutter Field. The first pitch is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. Petro and the track and field team will compete again on Saturday, Apr. 16 when they travel to Delaware, Ohio to compete in the All-Ohio Division III Championships hosted  by Ohio Wesleyan University. The meet is scheduled to begin at noon.