Top two offenses in Southland collide as Wildcats host Cardinals

ABILENE – It's a showdown between the top two offenses in the Southland Conference this weekend at Crutcher Scott Field as the Wildcats host the Lamar Cardinals for four important games. After a four-game weekend turned into just two games down in Houston, ACU (24-17, 15-11 SLC) returns home with a five-game winning streak that will get put to the test. Friday's single game begins at 3:05 p.m. and will feature an honor of their three seniors, who will miss ACU's commencement this weekend. Saturday's doubleheader gets started at 1:35 p.m., and Sunday's single game gets underway at 2:05 p.m.

Saturday's doubleheader and Sunday's single game can be seen on ACUSports.com.

FOLLOW THE SERIES

SERIES HISTORY

Lamar leads the all-time series 23-10, including a 13-5 lead since the teams have been in the Southland Conference together (2014). ACU won the last meeting between the teams, which took place two years in ago in Abilene, 6-5. Lamar has a comfortable lead over the last eight seasons in Abilene, winning nine of the 12 matchups.

THE PITCHING MATCHUPS

GAME 1 – ACU RHP Tyler Morgan (0-3, 8.04 ERA) vs. LU RHP Braxton Douthit (1-2, 3.37 ERA)

GAME 2 – ACU RHP Genner Cervantes (5-1, 6.45 ERA) vs. LU TBD

GAME 3 – ACU LHP Adam Stephenson (1-4, 3.88 ERA) vs. LU RHP Zach Bravo (5-1, 3.24 ERA)

GAME 4 – ACU RHP Spencer Chirpich (5-3, 5.75 ERA) vs. LU RHP Trevin Michael (4-2, 3.68 ERA)

ACU STORYLINES

• SWEEP OF HBU – The Wildcats played a shortened series against Houston Baptist last weekend due to weather, and after playing just four innings Friday, the game was pushed all the way to Sunday to finish it. ACU trailed 2-1 when the game resumed, and came out on top in a 5-2 game one. The teams then got together for the final game Sunday, and ACU squandered a 5-0 lead, only to come back again and win 8-6 to sweep the day. The wins pushed the winning streak to five, matching ACU's largest of the season.
• A PAIR OF SAVES – Junior Tanner Riley had not pitched since the Texas series, and after 14 days between outings, threw a scoreless ninth to earn the save in game one. The right-hander then stepped on the mound in the ninth inning in game two and did the same. It was a two-save day with five strikeouts for the ACU closer, who allowed one hit and did not walk a batter.
• “CRUZ”-ING AT THE PLATE – Tommy Cruz had a nice doubleheader at the plate against Houston Baptist. The Wildcat designated hitter went 4-for-6 at the plate, and drove in three runs in those at-bats as well. Cruz had an on-base percentage of .800 after drawing three walks as well, and scored a pair of runs. Cruz slugged .833 with a double, and is a big part of this dynamic ACU offense.
• PITCHING STAFF – The Wildcat pitching staff was fantastic against HBU as a whole, throwing 18 innings and allowing just 11 hits. It was a one-hitter in game one  with a combined outing from Tyler Morgan, Adam Stephenson, and Tanner Riley. In general, the staff struck out 25 Husky batters and allowed a minuscule .177 batting average in the doubleheader. Stephenson was really good in a rare relief outing, tossing 4.0 innings of scoreless, hitless ball with eight punch outs. Riley, Morgan, and Genner Cervantes each struck out five batters in their respective outings as well.
• TEAM NATIONAL RANKINGS – Here's where ACU ranks in different categories:
  • 28th (1st Southland) - Runs Scored (292)
  • 30th (2nd Southland) - On Base Percentage (.393)
  • 34th (1st Southland) - Batting Average (.292)
  • 35th (3rd Southland) - Hits (400)
  • 36th (1st Southland) - Runs Per Game (7.1)
  • 36th (3rd Southland) - Doubles (79)
  • 42nd (3rd Southland) - Total Walks (191)

SCOUTING LAMAR (19-15, 11-13 SLC)

• The Cardinals are coming off a series split against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, bouncing back with a pair of wins in games three and four after dropping the first two in the series.
• Lamar poses the second-best batting average as a team (.287), but Lamar has scored the third-fewest runs in the league (181). Lamar slugs at .417, tied with Sam Houston for the second-best mark in the league as well.
• Ben MacNaughton leads the way with a .372 average, while Chase Kemp has driven in the most runs with 36.
• The Cardinals pose the best ERA as a team in the league (3.59), and the three starters listed for the weekend have a combined 3.40 earned run average.