DBU Baseball's Kody Funderburk has been selected as the 2018 Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year, as announced by the MVC league office today.  Funderburk, a junior from Queen Creek, Arizona, hit .303 with 11 home runs and 41 RBI, while also making 11 starts on the mound and striking out 49 batters in 44.0 innings of work. 

Funderburk ranked in the MVC's top 10 in seven offensive categories including third in both slugging percentage (.596) and walks (38), fourth in home runs (11), fifth in doubles (17), seventh in total bases (106), and 10th in both RBI (41) and on-base percentage (.426).  Funderburk is also currently riding a streak in which he has reached base safely in 44 consecutive games.

On the mound, the junior lefty starred primarily in a mid-week starter role during the regular-season and helped lift DBU to key wins in his starts against Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Texas Tech.  In his start in Stillwater, Oklahoma, on March 13 at Oklahoma State, Funderburk was named the MVC Pitcher of the Week after allowing just one run over 6.0 innings, while surrendering just three hits and striking out five.

With today's announcement, Funderburk becomes the second Patriot since DBU joined The Valley in 2014 to garner Newcomer of the Year honors.  In 2016, Darick Hall was tabbedthe MVC's Newcomer of the Year, as he also starred as a two-way talent at the plate and on the mound.