GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Furman senior Nate Smith has been named Southern Conference Pitcher of the Week, the league announced today.

Smith, a left-handed starter from West Chester, Ohio, recorded one of the top performances of his career in Furman's 3-1, SoCon series opening win over defending SoCon regular season champion Appalachian State on Friday, allowing only a run on eight hits over 7 2/3 innings while striking out seven Mountaineers.  He threw 107 pitches in the contest, 79 of which went for strikes.

Smith's winning performance against ASU highlighted a strong week by the Paladins, who went 4-1 with a pair of road wins over defending Big South Conference champion Coastal Carolina, and a series victory over Appalachian State.

The ace of Furman's improved pitching staff, Smith (1-0) has made five starts this year and sports a 2.60 ERA with 27 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings of work.  The Paladins, now 13-4 on the season, currently own a 3.18 staff ERA after posting a 5.67 ERA a year ago.