'Jacks Battle Trojans Tuesday in Little Rock
3/31/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Stephen F. Austin at Arkansas-Little Rock
Tuesday, March 31 · 6:00 p.m.
Gary Hogan Field · Little Rock, Ark.
Records: SFA (9-19); UALR (10-13)
Live Video: UALRTrojans.com
Live Stats: UALRTrojans.com
Twitter Updates: @SFA_Baseball
Opening Pitch
Stephen F. Austin steps out of Southland Conference play for a one-game series at Arkansas-Little Rock. The Lumberjacks and Trojans throw out the first pitch at 6 p.m. at Gary Hogan Field in Little Rock.
Probable Starters
· LHP Eric Polivka, SFA (0-2, 12.56 ERA) vs. RHP Reed Willenborg, UALR (0-1, 7.70 ERA)
Scouting the Trojans
2015: 10-13, 8-3 home, 7-4 Sun Belt Conference
Last Series: W 3-0 vs. Appalachian State (W, 2-1; W, 4-3; W, 7-5)
Head Coach: Chris Curry (Mississippi State, 1999). First season at UALR (10-13, .435)
Synopsis: Arkansas-Little Rock sits at 10-13 on the year following a series sweep of Appalachian State at Gary Hogan Field. The Trojans have been strong at home this season, posting an 8-3 mark, and are currently tied for third in the Sun Belt Conference standings at 7-4. As a team, UALR is batting .239 with a 3.22 ERA while allowing their opponents to bat .295 with a 6.52 ERA. Ryan Scott leads the Trojans with a .373 batting average with a team-high eight doubles and 15 runs scored while ranking third in RBIs (10). Tanner Rockwell is hitting .317 for UALR with a team-best 16 RBIs.
Series Information
SFA and Arkansas-Little Rock have met 16 times previously heading into Tuesday night with both teams winning eight games in the series. SFA won the last meeting at Gary Hogan Field, a 3-1 decision in 2014, as the two teams were scheduled to meet at Jaycees Field earlier this year but the game was cancelled due to winter weather. The Lumberjacks are 4-3 all-time in Little Rock and are 5-4 against the Trojans under head coach Johnny Cardenas.
Last Time Out
SFA earned its first Southland Conference series win of the season, taking two of three at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The Lumberjacks cruised to the 7-2 victory in game one, then came up short in a ninth-inning rally to drop a 4-3 decision in game two. The finale was a wild one as SFA gave up eight first inning runs to the Islanders, trailing 8-1 after one, but fought all the way back to take the 11-10 victory and secure the series. It was SFA's first SLC series victory since taking two of three from Houston Baptist in the 2014 finale.
Thornell Named SLC Hitter of the Week
One of the key figures in leading SFA to its series victory over A&M-Corpus Christi was junior Kyle Thornell, who registered a monster series against the Islanders. Thornell batted 9-of-11, registering three hits each in the three-game series, with a pair of doubles and a homerun. Thornell batted .818 against the Islanders with a 1.273 slugging percentage and an .842 on base percentage, earning SLC Hitter of the Week honors for his efforts. It was the first conference honor of the season for the `Jacks and the first of Thornell's career.
SFA Among SLC Leaders
A number of Lumberjacks rank among the Southland Conference leaders in a number of categories. Thornell, the reigning SLC Hitter of the Week, is tied for second with three triples on the year while sitting fifth in slugging percentage (.512). Matthew Dickey also ranks second with 13 stolen bases on the year. Among pitchers, Patrick Ledet is tops in the conference in appearances (15) while Dillon Mangham is tied for second in shutouts (one). Tyler Wiedenfield is sitting second in saves (six) with Cameron Gann ninth overall in strikeouts (37).
Looking Ahead
Following the trek to Arkansas, SFA opens a key six-game SLC home stand, beginning with a three-game series with rival Sam Houston State. Game one of the series will get underway at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 2, followed by game two at 2 p.m. Friday, April 3. The final game of the series is set for a 1 p.m. pitch on Saturday, April 4 at Jaycees Field.
-SFA-
