Stephen F. Austin
Texas A&M
'Jacks Head to College Station for Tuesday Night Tilt with No. 10 Texas A&M
2/19/2018 5:54:00 PM | Baseball
SFA seeks fourth-ever victory over a current SEC opponent
Stephen F. Austin (0-4) at No. 10 Texas A&M (3-0)
Tuesday, Feb. 20 | 6:30 p.m. | Olson Field at Blue Bell Park (6,100) | College Station, Texas
Live Stats | Watch (SEC Network+) | Listen | SFA Notes | Texas A&M Notes
Pitching Matchup | RHP Cole Ridgely (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. LHP Dustin Saenz (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
LEADOFF HITS
• In its only battle with SEC opposition in the 2018 regular season, the Stephen F. Austin baseball team heads to College Station, Texas, for a midweek meeting with No. 10-ranked Texas A&M. First pitch at Blue Bell Park has been set for 6:30 p.m. and the non-conference game will be televised nationwide on SEC Network+ - an online-only streaming service.
• SFA goes into Tuesday evening's game in search of its first triumph of the 2018 season. Last week, the 'Jacks lost all four of their games in the Al Ogletree Classic at UTRGV, marking the first time since 2013 that the team began the season with an 0-4 record. That season, the 'Jacks would bounce back to post a 29-win year and earn a berth to the Southland Conference Tournament.
• After losing a little over three-quarters of their offense from a season ago, the 'Jacks have been relying on a number of newcomers to bolster their power numbers. Following NCAA Division I baseball's opening weekend, the 'Jacks rank 12th nationally and lead the Southland Conference with a total of five home runs. Each of those long balls has been hit by a different player including three by first-year SFA student-athletes.
• Junior and SFA newcomer Manny Vasquez has come on and filled the gap at shortstop for the 'Jacks following the departure of Tyler Kendrick after the 2017 campaign. Vasquez, a product of Naco, Ariz., is the only SFA player who has a hit in each of the 'Jacks' first four games and is one of four players on the team with a total of five hits.
• Through four games, SFA's pitching staff sits atop the Southland Conference having racked up a total of 14 strikeouts looking. Additionally, the 'Jacks' arms have picked off a total of four runners through their first four games which is another Southland Conference leading mark.
• In the field, SFA has turned four double plays - the second-highest total in the Southland Conference. It's also the nation's 32nd-highest total as of this writing.
• In program history, the 'Jacks have faced off against current SEC programs 49 times and have won three of those matchups. Those wins came against Texas A&M (7-6, 2/24/10), Alabama (2-1, 2/21/14) and Kentucky (9-2, 3/17/88).
SERIES HISTORY
RECORD vs. TEXAS A&M | 1-24 (.040)
STREAK | Texas A&M won seven
IN NACOGDOCHES | 0-1 (.000)
STREAK | Texas A&M won one
IN COLLEGE STATION | 1-23 (.042)
STREAK | Texas A&M won seven
AT NEUTRAL SITES | 0-0 (.000)
STREAK | none
LAST GAME | at Texas A&M 6, SFA 5 (12 inn., 2/21/17)
SFA RUNS | PER GAME | 58 | 2.3
TEXAS A&M RUNS | PER GAME | 183 | 7.3
LAST A&M WIN | Feb. 21, 2017 • 6-5 (12)
LAST SFA WIN | Feb. 24, 2010 • 7-6
CARDENAS vs. TEXAS A&M | 1-9 (.100)
SCOUTING TEXAS A&M | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Coming off a College World Series appearance in 2017, the Aggies began the 2018 campaign with a home sweep of Rhode Island over the weekend, outscoring the Rams 18-6 in the three-game set.
• Head coach Rob Childress posted his 500th career win (all at Texas A&M) in the Aggies' 4-1 opening day win over Rhode Islander last Friday night.
• Powerful pitching has been the story for Texas A&M through the first week of 2018. Two of the Aggies' starters worked at least 5.2 innings last weekend without yielding a run and Texas A&M's seven arms have amassed 36 strikeouts so far this season - an average of 12 per outing.
• Zach DeLoach (.467/.467/.867) and Michael Helman (.455/.538/1.000) represent the top two offensive threats for the Aggies. They are the only two Texas A&M players who are batting .400 or better and have combined for seven of the team's 17 RBI as well as three of the squad's home runs.
• Four teams from around the nation are set to convene at Jaycees Field this weekend for SFA's three-day tournament. The 'Jacks' first action of the eight-game extravaganza is set for 3:00 p.m. Saturday afternoon when SFA meets Bradley in its 2018 home debut.
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