Stephen F. Austin
Lamar
'Jacks Begin Southland Play with Three-Game Series at Lamar
3/7/2019 5:16:00 PM | Baseball
Both 'Jacks and Cardinals missed out on 2018 Southland Conference Tournament
Game Fourteen
SFA (5-8, 0-0 Southland) at Lamar (6-6, 0-0 Southland)
Friday, March 8 | 6:00 p.m. | Beaumont, Texas | Vincent-Beck Stadium (3,500)
Tickets | Watch (Facebook Live) | Live Stats | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | RHP Alex Palmer (0-1, 5.19 ERA) vs. LHP Jason Blanchard (2-1, 1.00 ERA)
Game Fifteen
SFA at Lamar
Saturday, March 9 | 2:00 p.m. | Beaumont, Texas | Vincent-Beck Stadium (3,500)
Tickets | Watch (Facebook Live) | Live Stats | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | LHP Jaxon Covington (1-0, 1.00 ERA) vs. LHP Noah Sills (0-1, 3.78 ERA)
Game Sixteen
SFA at Lamar
Sunday, March 10 | 1:00 p.m. | Beaumont, Texas | Vincent-Beck Stadium (3,500)
Tickets | Watch (Facebook Live) | Live Stats | Weather Forecast
Pitching Matchup | TBA vs. LHP Taylor Rich (0-0, 1.00 ERA)
LEADOFF HITS
• In search of a return trip to the Southland Conference Tournament after missing out on postseason play last season, the SFA baseball team heads south to Beaumont, Texas, where it begins Southland play this weekend during a three-game set with longtime league adversary Lamar from Vincent-Beck Stadium.
• Junior Sean Moore leads the team and ranks fifth in the Southland in batting average with a mark of .378. The infielder out of Waxahachie, Texas, is tied with senior infielder Manny Vasquez and freshman outfielder Brandon Uhse for the team lead with four multi-hit games.
• Moore also leads the Southland and ranks 10th nationally in terms of being the toughest to strikeout. He has fanned just once in 37 at-bats this season and most recently he had two of SFA's three hits in a midweek loss at 23rd-ranked TCU.
• Moore has been especially effective when playing away from home. In the 'Jacks' six games away from Jaycees Field this season, he has posted a slash line of .458/.480/.524, has 11 of the team's 51 hits and eight of its 23 RBI.
• Friday night starter Alex Palmer currently ranks second in the Southland and 32nd nationally with 25 total strikeouts. The right-hander is coming off of a 13-strikeout performance against Portland last Friday night. Those 13 strikeouts are the third-most in a single game in SFA baseball history.
• Senior outfielder Nick Daley has three of SFA's six stolen bases this season. That brings his total up to 24 during his time as a Lumberjack which is just one shy of the 10th-most by any player in program history.
• SFA is hoping to lock down its first Southland Conference series victory since May 11-13 of last season. That year, the 'Jacks took two of three from Lamar at Jaycees Field. SFA has not started its Southland Conference schedule with a series win since 2013 and that year the 'Jacks took two out of three from Nicholls in Thibodaux, La.
• Senior relief pitcher Jesus Gamez made his 2019 debut Tuesday afternoon in SFA's midweek setback at 23rd-ranked TCU. He struck out one and allowed one hit in a single inning of action. Last season, Gamez posted two of the 'Jacks' eight total saves and struck out a staff-best 36 batters while allowing opponents to bat just .177 against him in 29 2/3 innings of action.
OUR 'PEN IS MIGHTIER…
• Each of the 'Jacks' five pitching wins this season have come courtesy by a bullpen pitcher. Most recently, it was freshman Jaxon Covington who secured his first collegiate win by tossing four innings of two-run baseball in an 8-7 victory over Portland last Saturday.
• Junior left-hander Jacob Stobart came on in the Thursday night series opener against the Pilots and racked up eight strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings of work to pick up his first victory of 2019.
• SFA's bullpen arms have a combined record of 5-3 and have racked up 54 of the team's 106 strikeouts.
• Additionally, SFA has relied on the services of three players to close things out thus far in 2019. Senior Tyler Starks and junior Jeremy Rodriguez each have two saves to their credit this season while Cully Mangus has SFA's fifth and final save of the season. Rodriguez and senior right-hander Austin Hearn have appeared in seven of SFA's 13 games this season, an appearance total that's the second-highest in the Southland and the 19th-highest nationally.
• For his career, Hearn ranks fourth in program history with 80 total pitching appearances. Starks sits in third place in program history with 83 total appearances through his collegiate career.
• Starks is also tied for third all-time in total saves. The Mesquite, Texas, product has accumulated 15 since joining the 'Jacks in 2016.
SERIES HISTORY vs. LAMAR
Record vs. Lamar | 19-56 (.253)
Streak | SFA won one
In Nacogdoches, Texas | 11-28 (.282)
Streak | SFA won one
In Beaumont, Texas | 6-28 (.176)
Streak | Lamar won four
Last game | at SFA 4, Lamar 2 (May 13, 2018)
SFA runs/per game | 304/4.1
Lamar runs/per game | 492/6.6
Last Lamar win | May 12, 2018 (at SFA 3, Lamar 7)
Last SFA win | May 13, 2018 | at SFA 4, Lamar 2)
Cardenas vs. Lamar | 13-19 (.406)
SCOUTING LAMAR | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• Four of the Cardinals six wins thus far in 2019 have come at their home field of Vincent-Beck Stadium. Included in that total is a three-game sweep of LIU Brooklyn in the season-opening series for both teams back in February and a 3-1 victory over BYU on Friday, March 1.
• Extra-base power and solid starting pitching have been the calling cards of Lamar through the early portion of 2019. Four Cardinals have belted multiple homers this season including Robin Adames and Anthony Quirion who have gone yard three times each. Adames (.314/.352/.549) is one of three everyday starters who are batting .310 or better for the Cardinals and five of his 16 hits have gone for extra bases.
• Avery George (.378/.481/.422) leads Lamar in batting average, on-base percentage and runs scored (10). He has also notched one of the Cardinals' four triples this season. Reese Durand (.375/.423/.583) is the team's best in terms of slugging percentage as three of his nine hits have gone for extra bases (one double, two triples).
• Cole Coker (.318/.426/.523) has drawn a team-best nine walks while five of his 14 hits have been of the extra-base variety (three doubles, two home runs).
• Lamar's trio of weekend starters has combined to toss 42 2/3 of the Cardinals' 111 innings. That trio has posted a collective ERA of 2.11 in 2019 so far with Friday night starter Jason Blanchard leading the way in innings pitched (18), batting average against (.176) and strikeouts (20).
• As a team, the Cardinals rank 10th in the Southland in batting average (.251) but second in both triples (four) and home runs (11). The team's collective 4.30 ERA is the fifth-best in the 13-team league.
ON DECK
• Following a four-game road swing, the 'Jacks return to Jaycees Field for five consecutive games. First up during that stretch is a two-game non-conference series with Army. Tuesday's series opener is set for 6:30 p.m.
-SFA-
