FORT SMITH, Ark. – University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Baseball returns to action at Crowder Field for the first time in a month this weekend, with St. Edward's University visiting for a three-game Lone Star Conference series.
First pitch for Friday's doubleheader is 1 p.m. with game two to follow. Saturday's single contest will also feature a 1 p.m. first pitch. All three games will be available on the Lone Star Conference Digital Network with live stats at uafortsmithlions.com.
NOTES:
LAST WEEK: The Lions went 1-2 at Texas A&M-Kingsville last weekend, dropping Friday's contest, 7-1, before splitting the doubleheader. UAFS won game one, 13-1, but the Javelinas walked off with the nightcap, 4-3.
RUN RULE: UAFS has already had three games decided by the 10-run rule, with the Lions winning two of those games.
.342: The Lions are hitting .342 with runners on base, compared to just .112 when the bases are empty.
HURT SO GOOD: Senior catcher Dylan Hurt has thrown out eight runners this season, double that of the next most in the league. Runners have successfully stolen a base 42.9 percent of the time on the senior backstop.
AT THE PLATE: Junior first baseman Nolan Riley leads the Lions with a .360 batting average, having collected a hit in seven of nine games. Sophomore third baseman Brooks Sunny has scored eight runs, while junior shortstop Brenden Williams has driven in a team-high seven runs.
ON THE MOUND: Freshman lefty Nico Sharp continued his strong start to the season, tossing 6.1 innings in a start at A&M-Kingsville, allowing just one run. He now leads the team with a 1.42 ERA on the year. Freshman reliever Jakob Petross has yet to allow a hit in five innings of work.
AMONG THE LSC:
- Batting Average: Nolan Riley - .360 (25th)
- Walks: Nolan Riley – 10 (4th)
- ERA: Nico Sharp – 1.42 (5th)
- Strikeouts: Brayden Johnson – 15 (16th)
SCOUTING SEU: Freshman catcher Cullen Ainsworth and junior outfielder Trent Rosenauer are each batting over .400 for the Hilltoppers, while sophomore infielder Morgan Allen has a team-high seven RBIs. On the mound, junior Blake Holub has a 0.57 ERA through 10.1 innings pitched.
THE SERIES: St. Edward's leads the all-time series, 29-13, but UAFS is 6-4 in the last 10 games.
