Arizona State’s Contrades earns Pac-12 honor

With at least six true freshmen from Hawaii already making an impact at the Division I level, reigning Star-Advertiser All-State Offensive Player of the Year Nu‘u Contrades is separating himself from the rest.

The Arizona State third baseman was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week on Monday after leading the league-leading Sun Devils to a 4-0 record last week.

Contrades, a Saint Louis School alumnus, went 2-for-5 with the go-ahead double in a midweek win over No. 25 Grand Canyon and hit .500 (7-for-14) with two doubles, two homers and eight RBIs in a three-game sweep of Arizona over the weekend.

Bumped up to No. 2 in the lineup for the final two games against the Wildcats, Contrades recorded a career-high five RBIs and hit the go-ahead three-run homer in Saturday’s win. He closed the series with his second four-hit game, including a home run and three RBIs.

Over the last 11 games before Tuesday, Contrades is hitting .489 (24-for-49) with four homers, five doubles and 19 RBIs.

“We’re extremely proud of Nu‘u,” Arizona State coach Willie Bloomquist said in a news release. “We all know this was in the tank. He’s been playing gold glove defense over at third base and he’s totally bought in. Nu’u has been extremely patient and now we are all beginning to see the results that come with his level of talent.”

Contrades, who beat out Sacramento State starting shortstop Wehiwa Aloy of Baldwin to win the Star-Advertiser top player award last year, hit .462 his senior season with the Crusaders while dealing with an arm injury.

He made the Sun Devils’ starting lineup for the season opener and has started all but two games this year. He’s third on the team with a .361 batting average, ranking 14th in the Pac-12.