Stephen F. Austin
Houston Baptist
SFA Hosts Houston Baptist for First Southland Conference Home Series of 2019
3/14/2019 3:22:00 PM | Baseball
'Jacks are one of three Southland teams without a loss in league play
Game Nineteen
SFA (8-10, 3-0 Southland) vs. Houston Baptist (5-11, 0-3 Southland)
Friday, March 15 | 6:30 p.m. | Jaycees Field (1,000) | Nacogdoches, Texas
Tickets | Watch (Facebook Live) | Live Stats | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | RHP Alex Palmer (1-1, 3.91 ERA) vs. RHP Zach Carter (1-2, 3.70 ERA)
Game Twenty
SFA vs. Houston Baptist
Saturday, March 16 | 2:00 p.m. | Jaycees Field (1,000) | Nacogdoches, Texas
Tickets | Watch (Facebook Live) | Live Stats | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | LHP Jaxon Covington (2-0, 1.20 ERA) vs. RHP Brady Batten (0-2, 9.87 ERA)
Game Twenty-One
SFA vs. Houston Baptist
Sunday, March 17 | 1:00 p.m. | Jaycees Field (1,000) | Nacogdoches, Texas
Tickets | Watch (Facebook Live) | Live Stats | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | TBA vs. RHP Kyle Gruller (0-1, 1.61 ERA)
LEADOFF HITS
• One of only three Southland Conference teams without a loss in league play, the SFA baseball team is set to take part in its first home league series of 2019 this weekend when Houston Baptist heads north to Jaycees Field.
• The 'Jacks and Piney Woods rival Sam Houston State are tied atop the league standings through the first weekend of Southland Conference action.
• SFA's 3-0 start in Southland play is the team's first since 2011. That year, the 'Jacks won a program-best 37 games.
• The 2019 season marks the third season in program history that SFA has started Southland Conference play with a 3-0 record. In each of the previous two, the 'Jacks won at least 34 games.
• SFA's best start in Southland Conference play in program history came in 2011 when the 'Jacks won the first six league games on their schedule.
• In three of the four series they have played this season, the 'Jacks have won the series opener. The only exception to that was their mid-week set against Army where they dropped both
games.
• After its 12-inning setback to Army Tuesday at Jaycees Field, SFA saw its record dip to 2-1 in extra-inning games this season.
• Freshman outfielder Brandon Uhse continues to lead the 'Jacks in a number of statistical categories including batting average (.343), hits (23) and on-base percentage (.413).
SERIES HISTORY | SFA vs. HOUSTON BAPTIST
Record vs. Houston Baptist | 20-14 (.588)
Streak | Houston Baptist won three
In Nacogdoches, Texas | 12-6 (.667)
Streak | SFA won four
In Houston, Texas | 8-8 (.500)
Streak | Houston Baptist won three
Last game | at Houston Baptist 13, SFA 2 (eight innings on May 19, 2018)
SFA runs/per game | 224/6.6
HBU runs/per game | 184/5.4
Last HBU win | May 19, 2018 (at HBU 13, SFA 2, eight innings)
Last SFA win | May 19, 2017 (at SFA 11, HBU 10)
Cardenas vs. Houston Baptist | 16-10 (.615)
SERIES RECAP | SFA vs. ARMY
• In its first two games against a United States service academy in program history, the 'Jacks fell twice to Army in midweek action at Jaycees Field this past Tuesday and Wednesday.
• The series opener saw the Black Knights eke out a 5-4 victory in 12 frames. During that showdown, SFA walked 11 batters and had a pair of runners thrown out at the plate. Army broke the 4-4 deadlock in the top of the 12th when a bases-loaded walk sent the eventual game-winning run home.
• Wednesday night's series finale saw Army break a 4-4 tie by scoring four runs in the seventh before holding on for an 8-5 triumph.
• Three of the 'Jacks' 17 hits in the series came courtesy of senior Manny Vasquez who posted a slash line of .500/.625/.667 over the two-game set. Vasquez is tied with fellow senior Jake Georgiades for the team's longest active hitting streak (four games).
• After suffering through an 0-for-14 slump at the plate earlier in the season, Georgiades extended his season-best hitting streak to four games by batting .400/.571/1.000 in the two-game series. He belted his first homer of the season in the seventh inning of game one and has driven in one run in three of his last four outings.
• Senior righty Trayson Kubo struck out a career-high 11 batters through six innings of work in Wednesday night's setback. That outing representing the second game in 2019 that an SFA arm has racked up 10 or more strikeouts.
SCOUTING HOUSTON BAPTIST | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Putting an end to its nine-game skid in a powerful way, Houston Baptist blasted visiting Prairie View A&M 21-5 Tuesday afternoon at Husky Field. Most of the Huskies' damage at the dish came off the bats of three players as Hayden Baker (2-for-6, four RBI), Anthony Jones (3-for-4, four RBI) and Jeremy Simon (4-for-6, five RBI) combined to drive in 13 of the team's 21 runs.
• The Huskies' 21 runs were more three more than they had scored in their previous seven games combined.
• Houston Baptist comes in looking for its first Southland Conference wins of the season. The Huskies were swept at home against Sam Houston State last weekend.
• Johnny Gonzalez and Jones represent the two best bats in the Huskies' lineup through their first 16 games of the season. Gonzalez has put up a slash line of .393/.479/.656 since 2019 started and leads the team in those three batting categories as well as in hits (24), runs scored (10), walks (11), doubles (six), triples (two) and home runs (two).
• Jones is the only other regular member of the Huskies' starting lineup who is batting over .300. He's swinging at a clip of .362/.456/.574 on the year and leads the team with 11 RBI. Outside of Gonzalez and Jones, no other Houston Baptist regular is batting over .265.
• The Huskies have eight triples to their credit which is the highest total by any Southland Conference club this season. Those eight also represent the eighth-most by an NCAA Division I club thus far in 2019.
• Houston Baptist's weekend rotation has a combined record of 1-5 with an ERA of 4.64 through the early stages of the season. Projected Sunday starter Kyle Gruller has been the staff ace thus far with an ERA of 1.61 through 22 1/3 frames of action. Gruller's 27 strikeouts lead the team as does his batting average against of .123.
• Relief arm Jacob Coates has three of the Huskies' five pitching wins in his nine appearances.
NOT SPARING THE ROD
• Junior right-hander Jeremy Rodriguez owns one of the highest usage rates in college baseball thus far in 2019. Rodriguez has made a team and Southland Conference high 10 pitching appearances on the season which ranks as the eighth-most in the nation.
• He has posted a team-high three of the 'Jacks' eight saves while striking out 11 batters in 13 2/3 innings of work.
PALMER POWER
• Only one Southland Conference pitcher has accumulated more strikeouts than SFA junior right-hander Alex Palmer.
• In a staff-high 25 1/3 frames of work, the Arlington, Texas, product has amassed 34 strikeouts against only six walks. Those 34 strikeouts are the 26th-most by an NCAA Division I players thus far in 2019.
• Through his four starts this season, Palmer has seen his walk numbers go down in each one. As a result, has has succeeded in upping his number of innings pitched during each and every one of his four starts in 2019.
ACTION JAXON
• The only SFA pitcher who has not issued a walk so far this season, freshman lefty Jaxon Covington has posted two of SFA's eight pitching wins. Owning an ERA of 1.20, Covington has fired 15 frames and has totaled nine strikeouts and a .220 batting average against in that span.
M&M BOYS
• The duo of Jared Martin and Sean Moore have combined to drive in 25 of the 'Jacks' 70 runs through the team's first 18 games this season.
• Moore leads the team in RBI (15) and doubles (four) while Martin is tops in walks (10), runs scored (12) and slugging percentage (.406).
CLOSIN' UP SHOP
• With the return of senior Jesus Gamez, who made his 2019 debut for the 'Jacks last week, SFA now has a trio of pitchers with whom to call on to close things out.
• Gamez notched a pair of saves in his three appearances last week and Jeremy Rodriguez earned his team-leading third save in SFA's series opener against Lamar.
• In all, SFA's eight saves have been distributed among four individuals. In addition to Gamez and Rodriguez, senior Tyler Starks (two saves) and freshman Cully Mangus (one save) have each collected at least one save for SFA this season.
ON DECK
• Once their five game home stand wraps up Sunday afternoon, the 'Jacks hit the road for four consecutive games. That stretch begins Tuesday afternoon as SFA heads to Prairie View A&M for a 3:00 p.m. non-conference battle with the Panthers.
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