CARY, N.C. – Carolina RailHawks forward Nick Zimmerman has been selected as the NASL Offensive Player of the Week for Week 12, the league announced on Monday.

Zimmerman scored two goals in the RailHawks’ 5-1 win at Atlanta over the weekend.

He is the fourth different RailHawk to be named Player of the Week this season. Etienne Barbara has earned the honor four times, while Brad Rusin has been Defensive Player of the Week twice and goalkeeper Brad Knighton once.

“It’s a great honor and I’m extremely grateful,” said Zimmerman.  “The team performed well on Saturday and we were able to come away with the three points.  I would like to thank my teammates and coaches because without them the award is not possible.  Now we will get back to training this week and prepare for Montreal on July 3^rd.”

On Saturday, Zimmerman broke a 1-1 tie with his first goal of the night in the 21st minute. After taking a pass from Floyd Franks, he turned to attack the goal and had nothing but space in front of him. After a few touches, he uncorked a masterful left-footed strike into the far-side netting to give the RailHawks a 2-1 lead.

Zimmerman struck for his second goal in the 65th minute. Again he found himself with nothing but space just inside right side of the area. Again, he teed it up on his left foot. Atlanta goalkeeper Jimmy Maurer got his hands to the shot, but it had too much pace and it zipped into the net.

Zimmerman is the third different RailHawk to score two goals in a game this season, and Saturday marked the fifth time it’s happened in 2011. Barbara has done so three times and Pablo Campos once.

“It’s a well deserved honor for Nick”, said RailHawks Head Coach Martin Rennie.  “He does a lot for the team that sometimes goes unnoticed outside of the team, so it’s great for him to get this recognition. He is having a very strong season and he is very capable of having more games like Saturday night.”

One of four players to start all 13 games for the RailHawks this season, Zimmerman has scored four goals and played 1,127 minutes. He and the RailHawks, who have won nine straight, are unbeaten over their last 12 and hold an 11-point lead at the top of the NASL table, return to WakeMed Soccer Park on Sunday to face rival Montreal at 7 p.m. For tickets, call the RailHawks box office at 919-859-5425 or visit CarolinaRailHawks.com.