Stephen F. Austin
Sam Houston State
SFA Heads to Huntsville for Three-Game Series against Piney Woods Rival Sam Houston State
4/12/2018 5:54:00 PM | Baseball
'Jacks have won two of last three against Bearkats
Game Thirty-Three
Stephen F. Austin (12-20, 4-8 Southland) at Sam Houston State (23-10, 11-1 Southland)
Friday, April 13 | 6:30 p.m. | Don Sanders Stadium (1,163) | Huntsville, Texas
Live Stats | Watch (ESPN3) | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | LHP Dru Dziedzic (1-2, 4.80 ERA) vs. RHP Nick Mickolajchak (5-3, 2.65 ERA)
Game Thirty-Four
Stephen F. Austin (12-20, 4-8 Southland) at Sam Houston State (23-10, 11-1 Southland)
Saturday, April 14 | 3:00 p.m. | Don Sanders Stadium (1,163) | Huntsville, Texas
Live Stats | Watch (ESPN3) | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | RHP Sean Beasley (2-1, 6.93 ERA) vs. LHP Seth Ballew (2-1, 2.84 ERA)
Game Thirty-Five
Stephen F. Austin (12-20, 4-8 Southland) at Sam Houston State (23-10, 11-1 Southland)
Sunday, April 15 | 1:00 p.m. | Don Sanders Stadium (1,163) | Huntsville, Texas
Live Stats | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | RHP Trevor Kiminski (1-4, 5.50 ERA) vs. TBA
LEADOFF HITS
• Just a game-and-a-half outside the top eight in the Southland Conference standings, the Stephen F. Austin baseball wraps up its seven-game road swing by reigniting its age-old Piney Woods rivalry with Sam Houston State. The two longtime east Texas rivals will square off in a three-game series at Don Sanders Stadium in Huntsville, Texas, beginning with Friday evening's opener at 6:30 p.m.
• The 'Jacks have won their last two games beginning with a 6-5, 15-inning Southland Conference triumph at Northwestern State Sunday night before the squad headed to the Alamo City and locked up a 5-1 non-conference victory at UTSA Wednesday night. In addition to their current two-game winning streak, the 'Jacks have also won two of their last three against Sam Houston State.
• SFA's pitching staff put forth its best effort of the season Tuesday night in San Antonio as seven Lumberjack arms combined to strike out nine UTSA batters while issuing only one walk in the SFA triumph. The one walk tied a season-low for SFA's staff.
• This weekend SFA goes in search of consecutive series wins against the Bearkats for the first time since 2009 and 2010. Through that two-year span, the 'Jacks won five of the six
matchups against their Piney Woods rivals.
• During his current six-game hitting streak, junior shortstop Manny Vasquez has hiked his batting average to the second-highest among the 'Jacks' ranks. The Naco, Ariz., product
belted a two-run homer in SFA's Tuesday night victory at UTSA and currently owns a slash line of .320/.426/.533 making him one of three SFA regulars who possess a batting average above .300, an on-base percentage of at least .400 and a slugging percentage of over .500.
• Jared Martin (.320/.426/.533) and Josh Evans (.306/.406/.541) join Vasquez in that category while junior Jake Georgiades leads SFA in batting average with a clip of .329 and ranks second on the team with an on-base percentage of .447.
• Senior Eric DeJesus is one of the five SFA regulars who is hitting above .300. His batting average of .301 is the fifth-highest on the team while his on-base percentage of .448 is the best on the squad.
• In Southland Conference skirmishes, Vasquez is one of two players in the 13-team league who is hitting above .400. The junior's batting average of .405 in league tilts is the second-highest in the conference while his on-base percentage of .468 in Southland tilts is the fourth-highest.
• Evans (.541) and Martin (.533) rank eighth and 10th in the Southland Conference respectively in terms of slugging percentage. That makes SFA one of just two teams in the league to boast two players who ranks in the top ten in terms of slugging percentage.
• Extra-base hits have driven the slugging percentages of both Evans and Martin higher and higher as the season has progressed. Evans' six home runs are a team-best and represent the third-highest total in the Southland while Martin's 12 doubles are the second-most in the league and represent the most by a freshman in all of NCAA Division I baseball.
• Junior Nick Daley is one of the best base thieves in the Southland Conference. In his first season in an SFA uniform, the Gilbert, Ariz., product leads the league with 17 stolen bases. Those 17 steals are the 21st-most by any NCAA Division I baseball player in the land.
• Last Sunday, freshman left-hander Dru Dziedzic earned his first collegiate win by tossing 4.2 innings of flawless relief ball in the 'Jacks' 6-5, 15-inning triumph at Northwestern State. The first-year man out of Robinson, Texas, struck out a season-high seven batters in the span and retired all 14 batters he faced. Dziedzic has not surrendered a run in his last 12 innings of work and has given up just four hits and two walks in that same span.
• SFA ranks second in the Southland in home runs per game (0.78) and third in six other offensive categories including walks (162), doubles per game (1.84), home runs (25), sacrifice flies (14), scoring (6.3 runs/game) and slugging percentage (.402).
SERIES HISTORY vs. SAM HOUSTON STATE
Record vs. Sam Houston State | 27-51 (.346)
Streak | Sam Houston State won one
In Nacogdoches, Texas | 13-25 (.342)
Streak | SFA won two
In Huntsville, Texas | 13-23 (.361)
Streak | SFA won one
Last game | Sam Houston State 13, SFA 0 (May 24, 2017 | Southland Conference Tournament)
SFA runs/per game | 279/3.6
SHSU runs/per game | 320/4.1
Last SFA win | April 15, 2017 (at SFA 12, SHSU 2 • 8 inn.)
Last Sam Houston State win | May 24, 2017 (SHSU13, SFA 1 • 7 inn.)
Cardenas vs. Sam Houston State | 13-18 (.419)
SCOUTING SAM HOUSTON STATE | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Although they're in the midst of a three-game losing skid - their longest of the season - the Bearkats remain atop the Southland Conference standings having suffered just one league setback so far this season. Sam Houston State's RPI of 54 is the best among all Southland Conference teams and the Bearkats are receiving votes in the latest edition of the NCBWA poll.
• Heading into their weekend series with the 'Jacks, the Bearkats lead the Southland Conference in four statistical categories including earned run average (3.38, 34th nationally), home runs (32, 32nd nationally), home runs per game (0.97, 36th nationally) and slugging percentage (.434, 44th nationally).
• Headlining the team's imposing pitching staff are two of the top ten ERA leaders in the Southland Conference in Nick Mikolajchak (2.65 ERA, sixth in Southland) and Seth Ballew (2.84 ERA, ninth in Southland).
• Hayden Wesneski (2-1, 3.81 ERA) has been the pitching staff's workhorse so far this season, tossing a team-high 49.2 frames though 10 appearances - nine of which have been starts.
• Seven of Sam Houston State's regulars are hitting .300 or better led by Clayton Harp (.359/.436/.435).
• Blake Chisolm leads the Southland Conference in home runs (seven), home runs per game (0.23) and slugging percentage (.625). One of four Bearkats who have driven in 20 or more runs, Chisholm is batting .333/.434/.625 and is one of three players on the team with a squad-best 14 extra-base hits.
COMING UP NEXT
• Following a stretch of seven in a row away from Nacogdoches, the 'Jacks return to Jaycees Field next week to take part in four consecutive home games. The first of those tilt is set to take place at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday evening when non-conference foe Arkansas-Pine Bluff head southwest to Nacogdoches.
-SFA-
