Baseball | 4/26/2016 10:43:00 PM
Abilene Christian (13-24) vs. #14 Texas Tech (31-12)
Securioty Bank Ballpark
Midland, TX
How To Follow The Wildcats
Wednesday, April 27: Live Audio l
Live Stats
Starting Pitchers
Wednesday: RHP
Nate Cole (ACU) vs. LHP Erikson Lanning (TTU)
MIDLAND – The ACU Wildcats will try to snap a three-game losing streak Wednesday night when they take on No. 14 Texas Tech in a non-conference baseball game at Security Bank Ballpark, which serves as the home field for the Midland Rockhounds of the Double-A Texas League.
First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m., and the game can be heard on 98.1 FM The Ticket with ACU media relations intern
Seth Wilson calling the play-by-play action for the broadcast.
The Wildcats are 13-24 overall and after dropping three straight last weekend at Sam Houston State, none of them by more than three runs. The Wildcats lost last Friday's, 6-3, before falling 3-1 and 2-1 (13 innings) in the final two games of the series.
The Wildcats are 16-32 all-time against the Red Raiders and have lost 10 straight to Texas Tech, although ACU lost twice by one run apiece in 2015. The last ACU win over Texas Tech came on April 20, 1976, when the Wildcats beat the Red Raiders, 4-3, in the first game of a doubleheader in Abilene.
Junior infielder
Russell Crippen has raised his batting average to a season-high .331 to lead the Wildcats, and he also leads the club in home runs (three) and is second with 15 RBI to the 17 by junior
Braxton Wilks.
Senior catcher
Alex Copeland is hitting .284 with seven RBI, while freshman shortstop
Mark Pearson is hitting .277 with seven RBI on the season. The Wildcats are hitting .250 as a team as opposed to .266 by opponents.
ACU will send
Nate Cole (1-5, 4.58 ERA) to the mound Wednesday night against the Red Raiders. Cole has thrown 35 1/3 innings this season and has given up 46 hits, 26 runs (18 earned) and 16 walks while striking out 32 batters.
Texas Tech – who will start lefthander Erikson Lanning – enters Wednesday's game coming off a pair of losses to unranked Texas in Big 12 play. After winning the opening game of the series last Friday at Rip Griffin Park at Dan Law Field, the Red Raiders fell 7-4 on Saturday and 17-1 in seven innings Sunday afternoon.
The Red Raiders are hitting .302 as a team with 38 home runs, while opponents are hitting .261 with 21 home runs. Tanner Gardner is one of five Red Raiders hitting better than .308 on the season, leading the team with a .397 average to go along with two home runs and 26 RBI.
Stephen Smith leads the club with nine home runs to go along with a .331 batting average and 33 RBI, while Tyler Neslony leads the team in RBI with 41 to along with a .287 batting average and eight home runs.
After the Tech game Wednesday night, the Wildcats will return to Southland Conference action as they host Stephen F. Austin this weekend in a three-game set at Crutcher Scott Field.
