SFA Opens Series at McNeese State Friday
5/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Stephen F. Austin at McNeese State
Cowboy Diamond · Lake Charles, La.
Game One: Friday, May 1 · 6:30 p.m.
Game Two: Saturday, May 2 · 2 p.m.
Game Three: Sunday, May 3 · 1 p.m.
Records: SFA (15-30, 9-14 SLC); McN (25-20, 14-10 SLC)
Audio: Cajun Radio
Live Stats: McNeeseSports.com
Opening Pitch
Stephen F. Austin continues its season-ending road trip, making the trek down to Lake Charles, Louisiana, for a three-game series at McNeese State. Opening pitch against the Cowboys is set for 6:30 p.m. Friday afternoon, followed by game two Saturday at 2 p.m. and the series final Sunday at 1 p.m.
Probable Starters
· Game One: RHP Cameron Gann, SFA (3-3, 2.82 ERA) vs. RHP Kaleb Fontenot, McN (6-3, 2.78 ERA)
· Game Two: LHP Dillon Mangham, SFA (3-7, 5.21 ERA) vs. RHP Bryce Kingsley, McN (3-5, 4.40 ERA)
· Game Three: RHP Jarred Greene, SFA (2-4, 7.08 ERA) vs. RHP Ethan Stremmel, McN (3-4, 4.80 ERA)
Scouting the Cowboys
2015: 25-20 overall, 14-10 Southland, 18-9 home
Last Three Games: W vs. Southern (13-5), W vs. Nicholls (5-4, 11 inn.), L vs. Nicholls (13-1)
Head Coach: Justin Hill (LSU, 2002). Second season at McNeese State (55-48, .534)
Synopsis: McNeese State enters the weekend with a 25-20 record and a 14-10 record in Southland Conference play, sitting fifth in the standings. The Cowboys have won three of their last four conference series, including taking two of three from Nicholls last weekend. As a team, the Cowboys are batting .290 with a 3.98 ERA while allowing opponents to hit .252 with a 3.63 ERA. Four Cowboys are batting over .300, led by Joe Provenzano's .341, with Connor Lloyd hitting .329 with 25 RBI. Andrew Guillotte has established himself as one of McNeese State's top all-around players, batting .328 with a team-high 64 hits and 18 stolen bases. Connor Crane leads the Cowboys with seven home runs and 33 RBI, stealing 11 bases.
Series Information
McNeese State leads the all-time series 33-21, taking two out of three from the Lumberjacks in 2014 at Jaycees Field. SFA has posted an 8-17 all-time record in Lake Charles, winning the 2013 series with a pair of victories over the Cowboys. Since the program was reinstated, SFA is 10-12 against McNeese State and is 9-9 against the Cowboys under head coach Johnny Cardenas.
Last Time Out
SFA raced out to an early 2-0 lead on Louisiana Tech and was even with the Bulldogs heading into the bottom of the sixth inning. But a seven-run sixth inning by LaTech proved to be the difference as the Bulldogs raced to an 11-3 over the Lumberjacks in Ruston. Conner Fikes led the way for SFA, going 4-for-5 with a run scored.
Race For Sugar Land
With three weeks remaining in the regular season, SFA continues to make its push for the 2015 Southland Conference Championship in Sugar Land. Heading into the weekend, the Lumberjacks are ninth in the SLC standings at 9-14 in conference play, two games back of eighth-place A&M-Corpus Christi and one game ahead of 10th-place Lamar as the top eight teams qualify for the tournament. SFA has six conference games remaining against McNeese State and Lamar, rounding out the `Jacks' 2015 SLC slate.
Mangham's Memorable Night
Senior pitcher Dillon Mangham had a memorable performance in his final Jaycees Field start Friday evening against Abilene Christian. The left hander struck out 14 Wildcats, retiring 17-straight ACU batters from the second through seventh innings, before the Wildcat bats came alive in the eighth, handing him the loss. The 14 strikeouts was an SFA record for a Southland Conference game since the program was reinstated in 2006 and the second-most in a game behind Chase Greening's 17 strikeouts against Arlington Baptist in 2013.
Thornell's Bat Remains Hot
Junior Kyle Thornell continues to thrive in Southland Conference games, remaining among the league leaders in a handful of categories. Thornell leads the SLC in batting during conference games, recording 35 hits on 75 at bats for a .467 average, while slugging .813 with a .564 on base percentage. He has recorded 61 total bases in SLC play, including five doubles, six triples and three home runs, as he is tied for first in the nation with eight triples on the season.
Big Series For Boxwell
Junior catcher Tyler Boxwell had arguably the best series of his SFA career facing Abilene Christian this past weekend. In his two games against the Wildcats, Boxwell went 4-for-7, driving in five Lumberjack runs. He recorded three RBI in game one, including two in the seventh and one in the eight, helping SFA complete the comeback against the Wildcats, then drove in two of the `Jacks' three runs in game three, pushing SFA to the 3-0 victory.
Looking Ahead
After this weekend's series at McNeese State, SFA closes out its 2015 Southland Conference slate in Beaumont, taking on Lamar in a three-game series beginning Friday, May 8. It marks the final three SLC games of the season for SFA who will make its final push for the conference tournament.
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