SFA Looks To End Skid In League Series Against Demons
3/12/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 12, 2009
vs Northwestern State (8-5, 2-1 SLC) - March 13, 6:30 p.m.
vs Northwestern State (8-5, 2-1 SLC) - March 14, 2:00 p.m.
vs Northwestern State (8-5, 2-1 SLC) - March 15, 1:00 p.m.
BROWN-STROUD FIELD (1,200) - NATCHITOCHES, LA.
Probable Pitching Matchups:
Friday: SFA - Erik Gregersen, RHP (1-1, 4.50 ERA, 16.0 IP, 14 K, 6 BB) Northwestern State - Jimmy Heard, RHP (2-0, 2.29 ERA, 19.2 IP, 22 K, 4 BB)
Saturday: SFA - Erich Lehmann, RHP (0-2, 4.86 ERA, 16.2 IP, 15 K, 0 BB) Northwestern State - Clayton Cooper, RHP (0-2, 18.69 ERA, 8.2 IP, 8 K, 2 BB)
Sunday: SFA - Brett Rogers, RHP (1-0, 5.82 ERA, 17.0 IP, 7 K, 3 BB) Northwestern State - Kyle Broughton, RHP (1-0, 4.72 ERA, 13.1 IP, 14 K, 7 BB)
THIS WEEKEND The `Jacks travel to Natchitoches, La., to try and snap a six-game losing skid and break into the win column in SLC play against Northwestern State. The Demons won two of three from McNeese State to start league play last weekend.
AGAINST THE DEMONS SFA had lost three in a row against the Demons before a 7-2 win behind freshman Brett Rogers on Feb. 22 at the Warhawk Classic. Since then the Demons have won seven of their last 10 games, while SFA has only won two of its last 10.
FOLLOW THE 'JACKS RADIO: None
LIVE STATS: Viewers can follow the 'Jacks series versus Northwestern State via Gametracker on www.sfajacks.com on Friday night. All three games of the series will be available via Livestats at www.nsudemons.com.
UPDATING THE 'JACKS SFA has lost six straight games after falling for the third straight game in extra innings on Tuesday against Louisiana Tech. The `Jacks have left at least 11 runners on base in each of their last three losses.
UP NEXT With spring break going on around the SFA campus, the `Jacks will stay on the road on Tuesday at Houston Baptist before hosting the Huskies for a midweek tilt on Wednesday. Nicholls then comes to town for a weekend series and will be trying to avenge a three-game sweep at the hands of SFA in Thibodaux, La., last year.
ONE GAME MAKES A DIFFERENCE: Especially when that one game is a game that an opponent scores 24 runs. That happened the second game of the year against ULM when the Warhawks dropped in 24 runs against SFA pitching. Overall the `Jacks have a 5.67 team ERA, but take that game away and as a team SFA has a 4.07 team ERA, a mark that would currently stand as the second best team ERA in the conference. Erich Lehmann took the brunt of the damage in that game, making the start and taking the loss; however, in two starts since then he has a .173 opponent batting average and a 1.84 ERA in 14.2 innings.
GOTTA GET `EM IN: Nobody can say that the `Jacks did not have their opportunities against Central Arkansas on Saturday and Sunday, but SFA never could seem to convert until late in the game on Sunday. Overall, the `Jacks left 11 runners on base in 11 innings on Saturday, 14 more in 10 innings on Sunday and 11 more in 10 innings against La. Tech on Tuesday. The most SFA left on base throughout all of 2008 was 12 twice, against Sacred Heart (3/8) and Dallas Baptist (3/4). SFA also went a span of 25 consecutive innings without pushing across a run until the sixth inning on Sunday, tying the most since 2006 in that category. That year SFA went from the eighth inning on March 29 to the sixth inning on April 2 without scoring - a span of 25 innings over four games.
WARHAWK CLASSIC REMATCH: These two teams have already gotten a preview of each other from the opening weekend of the season when they played at the Warhawk Classic in Monroe, La. There, SFA picked up a 7-2 win behind freshman Brett Rogers' eight-inning start. Bo Coffman and Zach Gardner each had a pair of RBI as SFA chased Demons' starter Clatyon Cooper off the mound afer just 2.2 innings. Coffman delivered the first SFA home run of the year in the third inning after a three-run second inning gave the `Jacks the only lead they would need that day.
LINEUP SWITCH: The `Jacks made a change at the top of the lineup on Sunday when they moved shortstop Tanner Hines into the leadoff spot and put Zach Gardner in the No. 2 hole. Statistically speaking, the move is a sensible one considering that Hines is has reached 47 percent of the time he has led off an inning compared to just 25 percent by Gardner, however Gardner is more of an RBI threat having already driven in seven runs this year with one home run. The move seems to have worked with Hines having gone 6-for-12 in two games in the leadoff spot and Gardner having gone 5-for-11 in those same two games.
MR. ROGERS' NEIGHBORHOOD: Freshman Brett Rogers felt right at home on the mound in his collegiate debut on Sunday when he led SFA to a 7-2 win over Northwestern State. Rogers went eight innings in only 97 pitches for the win, scattering 11 hits in his time on the bump. That outing was the longest outing by a freshman pitcher for SFA since Erich Lehmann in 2006. That year Lehmann finished off the year on fire, picking up three consecutive complete game wins in the final three games of the season against TAMUCC, SE Lousiana and Sam Hosuton.
NOT MEYERED IN A SLUMP: First baseman/DH is one of the few Lumberjack hitters to be ranked among the best in the SLC. Meyers leads SFA in batting average (.426), slugging percentage (.681), RBI (12) and doubles (5). The Conroe, Texas, native reached all five times he came to the plate against UCA on Sunday and delivered the game-tying single with two outs in the ninth befre being stranded on deck in the 10th with the bases loaded. He followed that up with a 2-for-3 performance against Louisiana Tech that included a double and an RBI triple that sparked a ninth-inning comeback.
THE GARDNER DID IT: Zach Gardner is climbing quickly climbing the SFA record books, and with his eighth career triple against Houston tied Noel Trevino for the most ever at SFA. McNeese's Shon Landry (12) and UTSA's Michael Rockett (9) are the only active players in the SLC with more career triples. He also swiped a base against Louisiana Tech, giving him 24 for his career, placing him fifth all-time at SFA and is only six steals behind Jeff Brewer and Kai Kirby for the all-time top spot.
LUCKY (OR UNLUCKY) NUMBER SEVEN: SFA has found a key to winning over the past three seasons, and it is scoring at least seven runs that is usually no surprise. With the powerful offenses that the team has had over the past two seasons, it is no surprise that SFA has scored at least seven runs in 71 games since 2006, going 53-18 (.746) in those games; however, the 'Jacks have scored less than seven 111 times since 2006, going only 18-93 (.162) in those games. The 2008 season was alsmost divided directly down that line as SFA went 22-6 in games where they scored at least seven times, and were 3-23 in games in which they scored less than seven. This year the `Jacks have scored at least seven on four occassions, going 3-1 in those contests and 0-9 when scoring less than seven runs.
POWER SURGE: The `Jacks had only gone long two times in its first seven games, but ironically had three home runs in only two games against one of the nation's top pitching staffs at Texas A&M. Sean Meyers, Ryan Sinclair and Bo Coffman each went deep against the Aggies to bring the SFA home run total to five on the year. Unfortunately the `Jacks went without a long ball against Central Arkansas and only Zach Gardner's home run against UTA on Feb. 27th came with someone on base, though, as his two-run shot helped the `Jacks roll to a 12-6 win that day. SFA is 2-2 on the year when it hits a home run, with Coffman being the only Lumberajack with multiple homers so far this year.
JAYCEES GETS A FACELIFT: Beginning in the fall of 2008, the home of SFA Baseball, Jaycees Field, underwent several renovations including elevating the press box and adding new seating. SFA sank nearly $200,000 dollars into the project that includes creating a new playing field for SFA's softball team as well. At Jaycees Field, though, a new 740-seat bleacher system in addition to chair-back seating in a covered center section in front of the press box that was elevated nearly 30 feet.
RECORD CHASERS: Several Lumberjacks are chasing after the top spot in the SFA record books in a number of categories this year including Erich Lehmann, Richard Folmer and Zach Gardner. Lehmann is one of only two Lumberjack pitchers to have 200 career strikeouts (216) and needs only 5 K's to move past Sean Wood for the all-time lead, while also needing only 27.1 more innings to top the innings pitched category as well. Richard Folmer earned his 10th career save on against UTPA to tie Kevin Buchanan for the second most all-time.
CARDENAS CRACKS WIN COLUMN: With SFA's 7-2 win on over Northwestern State, head coach Johnny Cardenas was able to earn his first win as a collegiate head coach. The 2007 Texas Collegiate League Coach of the Year, Cardenas was SFA's top assistant before being promoted to head coach in July. He is the only first-year head coach in the Southland Conference this season, while JP Davis (NWLA), Scott Malone (TAMUCC), Darin Thomas (UTA) and Terry Burrows (McNeese) all debuted with their schools in 2008.
SENIOR CYCLE: The 2009 season will mark the fourth season with baseball back at SFA, and will mark the first four-year senior crop of players to make the full cycle through the program. Erik Gregersen, Zach Gardner, Erich Lehmann, Jared Schrom and Richard Folmer are each seniors that were part of the initial freshman recruiting class that opened up play in 2006.
-SFA-
