Sun Athletes of the Week: Anthony Pluta and Nikki Rose

Thursday, April 13, 2000 | 10:30 a.m.

ANTHONY PLUTA

School: Las Vegas

Class: Senior

Sport: Baseball

Family: Father Tony; mother Dee; brother Andrew

Last week: Pluta picked up two wins on the mound and went 5-for-9 with two home runs and eight RBIs to help the Wildcats to wins over Bonanza, Rancho and Valley. On Tuesday, the right-hander came into a 5-5 ball game in the fifth inning and pitched two scoreless innings in an 8-4 victory. On Thursday, he blasted a pair of grand slams -- one inside-the-park -- to spearhead Las Vegas' 14-1 win over the Rams. "It was weird. I didn't think I was going to do it," Pluta said of his two-grand slam day. "I just wanted some RBIs to help my team out, but the kid gave me a perfect pitch and I took it to left (for the second homer)." On Friday, he tossed five innings of two-hit baseball in a 12-2 victory against the Vikings.

This season: The hard-throwing Pluta is currently ranked No. 20 among all high school senior prospects in the nation by Baseball America. He is 3-3 on the season for the 10-9 Wildcats with a 4.90 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 31 innings. At the plate, he is hitting .429 with an area-best six home runs and 28 RBIs. "I think he's handling himself pretty well with all the attention he's gotten," Las Vegas coach Sam Thomas said. "He does his best to go after hitters, and he's starting to realize he's got seven guys behind him that are working hard for him."

NIKKI ROSE

School: Palo Verde

Class: Junior

Sport: Softball

Family: Father Ralph; mother Nadine; sister Natalie

Last week: Rose, the Panthers' starting second baseman, went 8-for-14 with four runs, three RBIs, a home run and a double to help Palo Verde to division victories against Mojave, Cheyenne and Cimarron-Memorial. After going 3-for-5 in a 14-1 win over the Rattlers on Tuesday, Rose was the hero of Thursday's 6-5 triumph over the Desert Shields, singling home the winning run in the 11th inning. She also homered in the contest and finished 3-for-5 at the plate. And on Friday in a critical 4-3 win over the Spartans, Rose went 2-for-4 with an RBI double. "I think Nikki's presence and performance was key for us last week," Palo Verde coach Lisa Campbell said. "She was an absolute threat at the plate, she was strong and aggressive on the bases and defensively, the combo of Nikki and shortstop Dusty Roberts is tough to beat."

This season: Rose, the Panthers' No. 2 hitter, is batting .386 with three extra-base hits and four RBIs for her 6-10 club. With last week's three wins, Palo Verde is in the thick of the Northwest Division race, tied for first with Centennial and Cimarron. "We came into this season unsure how we would do, but last week really boosted our confidence," Rose said. "The three wins last week have made the season a whole lot better."