Hours after NIU starting pitcher Jeremy Gonzales was named National Pitcher of the Week by Pro-Line Athletic, the Huskies’ Tony Manville turned in a solid performance on the mound in a 4-1 win at Illinois State.

The National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America decided that Gonzales’ three-hit complete game shutout against Miami (OH) was the best performance from any pitcher in the country last week. Gonzales struck out seven on Sunday, and didn’t issue a single walk to the RedHawks.

“There are a lot of pitchers in the country,” said NIU head coach Ed Mathey with a laugh. “So, it’s quite an honor for Jeremy.”

The Huskies honored Gonzales on the field Tuesday by beating a Redbirds team that was one week removed from a 7-4 win at Ralph McKinzie Field.

Tuesday’s game was won with a strong performance from Manville and some timely hitting from the Huskies. Manville gave up one run in 5.2 innings, while striking out five and walking two in what would be his third win of the season.

Troy White and Jordan Rishavy gave NIU all the offense it would need against the Redbirds (21-10) in the fourth inning. Each Huskie hit an RBI double to score the first two runs of the ball game. A sacrifice fly from Alex Beckmann in the fifth and an RBI single from catcher Brett Frantini in the sixth gave the NIU pitching staff some insurance.

“I was just getting a head of guys and throwing strikes,” Gonzales said. “My defense made a lot of plays behind me, and that was big.”

Mathey liked Manville’s day on the mound, but he was especially pleased with the defensive effort of the Huskies. NIU committed no errors a week after committing three against the same Redbirds team in DeKalb.

The NIU bullpen combined to finish the game by giving up no runs on two hits in 3.1 innings. Kyle Glancy worked the ninth inning to record his sixth save of the season.

The Huskies (14-16 overall, 6-3 MAC) have now won 14 of their last 20 games after starting the season 0-10.

“When you are on a streak like this you want the next game to start as soon as the last one ends,” Mathey said of the Huskies’ game against Chicago State today.