Pitching dominated this past week. Strong outings came with a number of complete games throughout our coverage area.

But two of our “Prep Ballplayer of the Week” candidates went above and beyond: collecting more than a dozen strikeouts in wins for their respective teams

Our third finalist, however, didn’t let the opposition faze him while at the plate.

Here are the standouts:

LJ Barkley, Sr., RHP, North County
Barkley had himself a day on the bump against Meade. In 4 2/3 innings of work, the senior right-hander struck out 13 batters in the team’s 7-2 win Wednesday. That’s 13 of the 14 outs recorded coming via the strikeout. Barkley allowed one run on four hits while walking three batters.

Nick Collier, Sr., LHP/OF, John Carroll
John Carroll and senior pitcher Collier handed Archbishop Curley its first MIAA A Conference loss of the 2018 season Thursday. The southpaw threw a complete-game, no-hitter against the Friars in the 3-0 victory. Collier, a Towson University commit, struck out 14 batters and issued four walks. It was the follow-up to a 12-strikeout performance in a win against Calvert Hall the previous week.

Lake Lloyd, Sr., INF, Mount Hebron
Lloyd wasn’t fazed by Long Reach pitching on Tuesday afternoon; he accomplished the difficult feat of a multi-homer game in high school. The senior hit two home runs and recorded five RBIs in the Vikings’ 10-1 win. He tallied three hits.

Others considered (listed alphabetically): Moises Aristy, Arundel; Kavi Caster, South River; Tyler Green, Northeast; Tyler Locklear, Archbishop Curley; Kody Milton, Severna Park; Paul Nixon, Archbishop Curley; Joe Seidler, Chesapeake; Matt Sowinski, Annapolis Area Christian

In case you’re visiting ‘Prep Ballplayer’ voting for the first time, here’s the drill: Three new candidates will be revealed each Monday. You get to vote – early and often – for the finalist you believe should be our winner. Voting ends every Thursday night and the winner is announced each Friday.

If you’re interested in submitting candidates for our consideration, please send the player’s name, key statistics from the previous week and your contact information to [email protected]. We welcome suggestions and your feedback.