CORVALLIS, Ore. – The ACU Wildcats close out the 2017 season this weekend playing the biggest underdog role in program history as they take on the nation's best team in No. 1-ranked Oregon State.
While the Wildcats enter the four-game series at 13-39 overall, the Beavers enter at 45-4, champions of the Pac-12 by the largest margin (7.5 games) since Stanford in 1985 and with a team ERA of 1.87 that is the best in the country. In fact, just last week the Beavers gave up their 100th run of the season (they enter this weekend's series having given up just 111 runs and with opponents hitting a meager .190 against the nation's best pitching staff).
Thursday night's series-opener gets started at 7:35 p.m. (Abilene time) with Friday's game set for the same time. Saturday's game will get started at 3:35 p.m. (Abilene time) and Sunday's series and season finale set for a 2:05 p.m. start (Abilene time). All four games will be heard on 98.1 FM The Ticket.
This weekend brings to a close the career senior infielder / outfielder
Russell Crippen, who is ACU's NCAA Division I-era leader in runs scored (109), hits (213), doubles (48), home runs (20), RBI (107), total bases (327) and stolen bases (28) and earlier this week was announced as a first team all-Southland Conference performer.
Crippen — who ranks among Southland Conference leaders in batting average (.375), hits, doubles, home runs, RBI and total bases – also ranks ninth in ACU history in hits, tied for ninth in home runs and 10th in total bases.
These four games are also the final four in the career of infielder / outfielder
Aaron Draper, who is ACU's NCAA Division I-era leader in games played (201), games started (193) and at-bats (736). He also has 202 career hits, which is 10th in ACU history.
The Wildcats will send left-hander
Austin Lambright (0-3, 5.54 ERA) to the mound to start Thursday night's game, followed by junior right-hander
Drew Hanson (3-5, 6.10 ERA) on Friday, sophomore left-hander
Derek Scott (2-3, 4.08 ERA) on Saturday and freshman left-hander
Nick Skeffington (1-5, 7.63 ERA) on Sunday. ACU enters the series with a team ERA of 7.12 and opponents are hitting .318 on the season against the ACU pitching staff.
While the pitching staff has struggled, the Wildcats have been solid at the plate, hitting .278 on the season and averaging 5.2 runs per game. While Crippen leads the club with a .375 batting average and 10 home runs, junior catcher
Luis Trevino — a third team all-Southland Conference selection at designated hitter — is hitting .360 with a team-high 43 RBI to go along with four home runs. Scott — an honorable mention all-conference pick in the outfield — is hitting .303 with five home runs and 23 RBI to go along with a team-high 18 stolen bases. The sophomore from Abilene High has committed just one outfield error on the season and has nine outfield assists, one of the top numbers in the conference.
Last season when the Wildcats scored just 182 runs in 53 games, Crippen led the club with 19 RBI. The Wildcats have scored 271 runs this season in 52 games and have seven players with at least 20 RBI: Trevino (43), Crippen (41), freshman outfielder / DH
Anthony Dominguez (29), Scott (23), sophomore first baseman
Koby Claborn (22), sophomore infielder / outfielder
Dalon Farkas (22), and sophomore shortstop
Mark Pearson (21).
The Wildcats have faced the nation's No. 1 team in baseball once before in their NCAA Division I era, and that came on April 15, 2015, when they lost to top-ranked Texas A&M, 3-2, in College Station. No other ACU program has faced the No. 1 team in the country in its respective sport since the Wildcats began transition from NCAA Division II to NCAA Division I affiliation.
