PORTLAND, Ore. – Jarrod Molnaa became the third straight Montana State University Billings baseball pitcher to be named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week announced by the conference office on Monday.
 
The senior right-hander authored a three-hit, nine-inning shutout of Saint Martin's University on Sunday, helping the Yellowjackets win 6-0 and climb to the top of the GNAC standings with a four-game sweep of the Saints. "Jarrod threw a phenomenal game this weekend," said MSUB head coach Aaron Sutton. "He is an ultra competitor on the mound, and he had three pitches working for him. When he trusts his stuff the way he did Sunday, he is tough against anyone. It is great for him to be honored by the conference for his performance, but we ultimately know he is just as proud of the entire staff coming out of this weekend series."
 
Molnaa struck out nine batters to match his season high, while walking only one and scattering three hits over his nine full innings of work. It was the first nine-inning shutout by any pitcher in the GNAC this season, and the fifth overall shutout. Cooper Webster and Ben Johnson of Northwest Nazarene, and Gabe Benavides and Austin Crowson of Western Oregon have each also thrown a shutout in 2019, but all four of those efforts were in seven-inning ballgames.
 
It was the first shutout by an MSUB pitcher since Tanner Johnson logged a three-hit, nine-inning shutout on April 25, 2015 against Northwest Nazarene University. Overall it was the 18th shutout in program history dating back to 2006.
 
Molnaa joined Brooks Zimmer last week and Dylan Barkley two weeks ago as the third member of MSUB's pitching staff to claim the conference's weekly award this season. It is the fifth overall player of the week honor for MSUB's baseball team, as Daniel Cipriano and Conner Linebarger have each also earned the award this spring.
 
MSUB (11-13, 11-5 GNAC) takes a seven-game winning streak into this weekend's four-game series at Concordia University in Portland, Oregon. Doubleheaders are scheduled to start at noon Pacific time on Friday and Saturday, and live video with play-by-play commentary and live statistics will be available for all four games through the MSUB Stretch Internet portal online here.