CLEVELAND – Kent State junior linebacker Luke Batton (Macedonia, Ohio) and junior kicker Freddie Cortez (Fort Meade, Fla.) were both honored as players of the week by the Mid-American Conference Monday.

Batton was named the MAC East Division Defensive Player of the Week, and Cortez was honored as the MAC East Special Teams Player of the Week following Kent State’s 27-15 win over Bowling Green Saturday.

Batton anchored the Golden Flashes defense that held Bowling Green without a touchdown in all four of their trips to the red zone. The middle linebacker finished the game with 10 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, a pass breakup and one quarterback hurry.

For the year, Batton leads the team in tackles with 71, and he also has three pass breakups and a blocked field goal to his credit.

Monday marks the fourth different time a Kent State defender has been honored by the MAC. Sophomore safety Luke Wollet (Poland, Ohio), junior linebacker C.J. Malauulu (Oceanside, Calif.) and sophomore defensive lineman Roosevelt Nix (Reynoldsburg, Ohio) have also won the award this season.  

On special teams, Cortez connected on both field goal attempts, including a 44-yarder to put the Flashes on the board, and converted all three extra point attempts. He also had one touchback and two other kickoffs that resulted in tackles inside the 20.

The junior has now made 8-of-10 field goal attempts, 10-of-11 extra points, and has booted seven touchbacks.  Cortez has now earned the MAC weekly honor four times in his career.

Kent State wraps up its three-game homestand Friday (Nov. 4) at 8 p.m. against Central Michigan on ESPN2.