Midweek at The Crutch: ACU hosts ORU Wednesday

ABILENE CHRISTIAN (13-3, 0-0 WESTERN ATHLETIC) vs. ORAL ROBERTS (9-7, 0-0 SUMMIT LEAGUE)
Wednesday, March 15 · 12:05 p.m. · Crutcher Scott Field (4,000) · Abilene, Texas
Projected Starters: RHP Rolando De La Cruz (1-1, 14.14 ERA) vs. RHP Joshua Caravalho (2-1, 3.55 ERA)
Watch: WAC International
Listen: ACU Sports Network
Live Stats
Tickets

ABILENE – It's the first midweek in a while for the ACU baseball team as it welcomes in Oral Roberts on Wednesday afternoon at Crutcher Scott Field. The Wildcats (13-3, 3-0 WAC) are off to their best start in the Division I era of the program and look to add to that total with the final game of a 12-game home stand. The second midweek game of the season gets underway on Wednesday at 12:05 p.m. and the game will air on both WAC International and on the radio on the ACU Sports Network.

SERIES HISTORY VS. ORAL ROBERTS

• ALL-TIME | 4th meeting (Oral Roberts leads, 2-1)
• LAST MEETING | Oral Roberts 3, ACU 1 (May 11, 2014 - Tulsa, Okla.)
• STREAK | Oral Roberts, w2
• IN ABILENE | n/a
• IN TULSA | Oral Roberts leads, 2-1
• NEUTRAL | n/a
• POSTSEASON | n/a

ACU STORYLINES

• HISTORIC START – ACU's 13 wins through the first 16 games is the best start in the Division I history of the program. ACU moved to Division I in 2013, and the first baseball season played at that level was in the spring of 2014. The 'Cats started the 2018 season 12-4, the second-best mark of the D1 era.
• WEEKEND SWEEP – ACU opened WAC play last weekend with a sweep of SFA at Crutcher Scott Field, the third consecutive sweep of the Lumberjacks in the last two seasons. The Wildcats won the opener on Friday night in come-from-behind fashion, scoring four times in the eighth inning to win, 7-4. ACU built up a lead an early lead in game two on Saturday, and held on for an 11-6 victory. The finale featured an early SFA lead, but the 'Cats battled back, built up as much as a five-run lead, and held on 9-6. ACU is now 9-0 in the last two seasons against its rivals from Nacogdoches.
• LAST WEEKEND'S NUMBERS – Miller Ladusau led the way with a .571 batting average, going 8-14 with a triple and a run batted in. The junior scored four runs and stole a pair of bases as well. He guided an offense that hit .355 for the weekend, scoring 27 runs on 38 hits. ACU drew 13 walks led by Garrett Williams' four, giving the ‘Cats a .441 on-base percentage. Crew Parke hit .545 while Grayson Tatrow hit .462. Tanner Tweedt hit a pair of home runs on Sunday, the first two-homer game of the season for the ’Cats. Tyler Morgan, in a no-decision, went six strong innings with 11 strikeouts on Friday night, a new season-high.
• AN EYE ON THE STREAKS – Tanner Tweedt and Grayson Tatrow are both currently on seven-game hitting streaks, while Crew Parke has hit safely in five straight games. Miller Ladusau's on-base streak is at 10 in a row, while Tweedt, Tatrow, and Logan Britt all have reached safely in seven straight games.
• TEAM LEADERS – Britt leads the ‘Cats with a .397 average, while Williams is hitting .362 on the year. Five players all sit at .333 or higher, including Tweedt (.345), Ladusau (.345), and Parke (.333). Britt and Tweedt lead the way with three homers each, while Tatrow paves the way with 21 rbi on the season. Tyler Morgan’s 2.25 earned run average in four starts leads the pitching staff, as do his 35 strikeouts and .165 opponent batting average.
• PRESEASON POLL / AWARDS – The Western Athletic Conference announced the preseason poll and the preseason all-conference selections for the upcoming season, and the Wildcats are picked tied for fourth in the 13-team league. Junior Bash Randle and seniors Grayson Tatrow and Tanner Tweedt were all named to the all-conference list as well prior to the season. Grand Canyon was picked to win the conference, followed by Sam Houston and California Baptist. ACU tied with UTRGV and Sacramento State for fourth overall.
• BACK TO ONE BIG LEAGUE – The WAC is moving back to a traditional format in 2023. All 13 teams will be in one standings list, and there will be no divisions this season. There will be 30 league games against 10 of the 12 possible opponents, and the 2023 WAC Tournament will start May 24 in Mesa, Ariz.
• A GLANCE AT THE TOUGH SCHEDULE – The 2023 slate encompasses 55 games, including 30 Western Athletic Conference games (10 three-game series), and another 25 non-conference games (four series and 11 single games). Overall the team will host 35 times at Crutcher Scott Field, the most in the Rick McCarty era. ACU will play 21 games against teams that finished in the top 100 in RPI in 2022, nine games against Power 5 opponents (Oklahoma, TCU x2, Baylor x2, Nebraska, Texas Tech x2, Texas), and 14 games against 2022 regional teams (Oklahoma, Southeast Missouri, Oral Roberts, TCU, Texas Tech, Texas, Grand Canyon). There are five first-time opponents on the slate (Southeast Missouri, Sacramento State, Nebraska, California Baptist, Utah Tech), and there are four home games against Power 5 opponents (Nebraska, TCU, Texas Tech, Baylor).
• THE COACH – Head Coach Rick McCarty enters his fifth season as the head man at ACU, and earned his 100th career win on Opening Day. He sits at 112 career victories in his time at ACU, which includes a regular-season championship and a runner-up finish at the tournament.

SCOUTING ORAL ROBERTS (9-7, 0-0 SUMMIT LEAGUE)

• The Golden Eagles play at Tarleton on Tuesday night before coming to the 325 on Wednesday. ORU is looking to end a three-game skid after being swept by Dallas Baptist on the road last weekend.
• Jonah Cox leads the offense with a .413 batting average, while Matt Hogan's five homers are a team-high. Drew Stahl has a team-best 17 runs batted in this season.

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