Baseball | 3/28/2016 5:24:00 PM
Dallas Baptist (15-8, 0-0 Missouri Valley) at Abilene Christian (9-14, 2-7 Southland)Crutcher Scott Field (4,500)Abilene Tuesday, March 29 (6:30 p.m.): Audio / Video l
Free Audio l
Live Stats Starting PitchersLHP Jordan Martinson (DBU) vs. RHP
Nate Cole (ACU)
ABILENE – The ACU Wildcats will try to snap a seven-game losing streak when they host the Dallas Baptist Patriots in a non-conference game Tuesday at Crutcher Scott Field.
First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m., and the game can be heard on 98.1 FM The Ticket with The Voice of the Wildcats
Grant Boone calling the play-by-play action.
The Wildcats have fallen to 9-14 on the season and 2-7 in conference play after getting off to a solid start to their season.
But the last three weekends haven't been kind to the Wildcats as they have been swept No. 22 Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla., three weeks ago and then by Southeastern Louisiana and McNeese State in Southland Conference play in each of the last two weekends.
ACU also lost 6-4 at No. 7 TCU last Tuesday in a game that saw the Wildcats fall behind 6-0 after giving up six unearned runs in the first inning. The Wildcats' only win since a win at Nicholls on March 6 was a 10-0 win over Texas-Permian Basin at home on March 15.
The Wildcats are hitting .252 as a team and are led by senior catcher
Alex Copeland, who is the Wildcats' leading hitter at .300 to go along with six RBI. Junior outfielder
Braxton Wilks is the team's leading run-producer with 13 RBI to go along with a .271 batting average.
Juniors
Russell Crippen and
Aaron Draper are hitting .296 and .294, respectively, and have each driven in eight runs.
Senior righthander
Nate Cole is expected to get the start on the mound tonight for the Wildcats, just as he did last Tuesday at TCU. Cole is 1-3 with a 4.05 ERA in 20 innings of work this season.
DBU – which has reached an NCAA regional five times since 2008, including hosting a regional in 2015 – has been ranked nationally this season, but enters tonight's game having lost two of three at home to the Baylor Bears.
DBU is led offensively by junior college transfer Darick Hall – this week's Missouri Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Week – who is hitting .344 with 11 home runs and 32 RBI. The Patriots are hitting .307 as a team and have six regulars hitting better than .300.
The Patriots are expected to send lefthander Jordan Martinson to the mound tonight to start against the Wildcats. Martinson is 1-0 with a 2.91 ERA in eight appearances (three starts) for the Patriots in 2016.
After Tuesday's game, the Wildcats will host Southland Conference foe Lamar this weekend in a three-game non-conference series in Abilene.
