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RIVERSIDE, Calif. – The ACU baseball team, after having Tuesday's game end in the fourth inning due to lightning, is off to the west coast for its first games outside of the Lone Star State this weekend when it takes on California Baptist in a pivotal three-game set. The Wildcats (25-14, 10-8 WAC) and Lancers (21-20, 10-8 WAC) currently share the fourth-place spot in the conference standings, and the top four teams get a first round bye in the upcoming 2023 University Credit Union WAC Baseball Tournament. The winner of the series has a leg up on that coveted fourth-place spot heading into the final month of the season. It will be the inaugural meeting between the schools when the series kicks off on Friday, April 28 at 8 p.m. CT. Game two is on Saturday, April 29 at 7 p.m. CT, while Sunday's finale gets underway at 12 p.m. CT. All three games air on ESPN+.
GAME #40
ACU (25-14, 10-8 WAC) at CALIFORNIA BAPTIST (21-20, 10-8 WAC)
Friday, April 28 | 8 p.m. CT | James W. Totman Stadium (800)
Projected Starters: RHP
Tyler Morgan (2-2, 5.24 ERA) vs. RHP Liam Rocha (5-0, 2.59 ERA)
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GAME #41
ACU (25-14, 10-8 WAC) at CALIFORNIA BAPTIST (21-20, 10-8 WAC)
Saturday, April 29 | 7 p.m. CT | James W. Totman Stadium (800)
Projected Starters: RHP
Breck Eichelberger (4-2, 4.22 ERA) vs. RHP Spencer Bengard (3-1, 5.92 ERA)
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GAME #42
ACU (25-14, 10-8 WAC) at CALIFORNIA BAPTIST (21-20, 10-8 WAC)
Sunday, April 30 | 12 p.m. CT | James W. Totman Stadium (800)
Projected Starters: RHP
Austin Glaze (2-0, 6.41 ERA) vs. TBD
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A LOOK AT ACU
The Wildcats enter the week with a 25-14 record and a 10-8 mark in WAC play. ACU has dropped eight of its last 11 games including a 1-3 record on the road last week. The Wildcats lost at #14 Texas, 20-0, before dropping two of three at UTRGV over the Weekend. ACU won the Friday night game, 4-2, before dropping both games as part of a Saturday doubleheader. The Vaqueros beat the Wildcats 8-4 in game two and beat ACU 2-1 in 10 innings in the rubber match.
SCOUTING CALIFORNIA BAPTIST
California Baptist enters the weekend with a 21-20 record and an identical 10-8 mark in WAC play. The Lancers have played five consecutive non-conference games including a win over UC Riverside and a series win over UNLV. CBU lost to Hawaii on Tuesday at home, 9-4, and have dropped the last two games heading into the weekend. The Lancers have hit 54 home runs this season and have a team batting average of .278, but the pitching has stood out. Two-time WAC Pitcher of the Week Liam Rocha leads the way with a 5-0 record and a 2.59 ERA, and starter Spencer Bengard is 3-1 with a 5.92 ERA in 10 starts. Rocha has 72 strikeouts this season.
INSIDE THE SERIES
All-Time: First meeting
GAME VS. #14 TEXAS TECH SUSPENDED
ACU's home game on Tuesday against No. 14 Texas Tech was suspended in the bottom of the fourth inning due to severe weather and lightning in the area. There has been no decision on when the game will resume. The two teams will get together in Lubbock on May 9 for a game that was originally scheduled to be played on April 4. That game is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
LAST WEEKEND AT UTRGV
ACU struggled to swing the bats in Edinburg, scoring just nine runs and hitting just .208 for the weekend. The Wildcats scored four in the opener, including a go-ahead triple in the ninth inning from Logan Britt to win it, 4-2. ACU hit three homers in game two of the series, all solo shots from Britt, Grayson Tatrow, and Tanner Tweedt. In the finale, ACU and UTRGV were scoreless heading to the 10th inning, where the 'Cats put the first run of the game on the board. However, the Vaqueros answered with two in the bottom of the 10th to win the game and the series, 2-1.
HISTORY FOR TWEEDT
Catcher Tanner Tweedt had a remarkable game on Apriil 14 against Grand Canyon. The senior hit three home runs and tallied nine RBI in the game, either tying or breaking single-game records at ACU. The three homers tie his teammate Logan Britt, who did so against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on March 31, Luis Treviño in 2019 against New Orleans, and Joel Wells in 2006 against Tarleton. The nine RBI set a record that was previously held by Colton Eager (2021 vs. Arkansas State) and Matt McGuire (2007 vs. Southeast Oklahoma State), who both had eight.
TATROW AT THE TOP
Grayson Tatrow has hit 39 career home runs at ACU and stands alone at the top of the record book. No one has hit more in their career in Wildcat history, and Tatrow is only in the middle of his third season at ACU.
LATE-INNING HEROICS
Maddox Miesse has had a flare for the dramatic so far during his freshman campaign. The third baseman hit a walk-off single to beat Oklahoma, hit a walk-off grand slam to top Southeast Missouri, and hit a single to walk-off against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on April 2.
THE FIFTH INNING
ACU is outscoring its opponents by an insane margin of 46-6 this season. Of ACU's 44 homers this season, eight of them have occurred in the fifth inning, the second most in any inning this season (nine in the sixth).
HOME RUN BREAKDOWN
ACU has hit 44 home runs this season, led by Tatrow's 12, Britt's 10, and Tweedt's eight. Of the 44, 26 are solo shots and 10 are two-run homers. 19 have come with two outs in the inning, and another 19 have come with no one out. The splits are pretty even off pitchers; 25 have come off right-handers, while 19 have come off south paws.
AN EYE ON THE STREAKS
Garrett Williams leads ACU with a five-game hitting streak and on-base streak, while Maddox Miesse and Logan Britt each have a hit in three straight games. Miesse has reached base in four consecutive games as well.
PRESEASON POLL / AWARDS
The Western Athletic Conference announced the preseason poll and the preseason all-conference selections for the season, and the Wildcats are picked tied for fourth in the 13-team league. 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.
D1BASEBALL PRESEASON
D1Baseball released its preseason picks for the Western Athletic Conference, and ACU was picked sixth in the league. It also highlighted the top draft prospects from the conference, and in the 2023 draft, Eichelberger was the sixth-best prospect in the league, while Texas A&M transfer Logan Britt was ninth overall out of the outfield spot. Morgan, back for his junior season, came in at 13 on the list as well. In the 2024 draft, Byrd was listed fourth in line in the league. Tatrow, the Southland Newcomer of the Year and on the second team in 2021, was labeled #138 in the top 150 outfielders in the country.
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 is in his fifth season as the head man at ACU and earned his 100th career win on Opening Day. He sits at 124 career victories in his time at ACU, which includes a regular-season championship and a runner-up finish at the tournament. McCarty ranks second in all-time wins at ACU.
