ABILENE, Texas – The McMurry baseball team could face its toughest task of the year when it plays host to St. Mary's University on Friday and Saturday at Walt Driggers Field.
 
The War Hawks are coming off a split with West Texas A&M University. McM fell, 6-0, in the first contest, before winning game two, 6-5, on a walk-off base hit by Zack Hagan in game two.
 
In the two game series, Hagan led the way, going 3-for-6 with three RBI and a run scored. Ricky Garcia also collected two hits in the victory, helping to snap a five-game losing streak for the War Hawks.
 
The Rattlers come into the three-game series as the number one ranked team in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) South Central Regional Poll and as the seventh ranked team nationally in all of Division II.
 
St. Mary's is currently boasting a 16-6 record and is coming off a 10-2 victory over Texas A&M – Kingsville on Tuesday. In that contest, lead-off man, Billy Richard, went 5-for-6 at the plate and Mario Maldonado, Brandon Bates and Al Gonzalez all drove in two RBI.
 
Offensively, McMurry has been led this season by Jon Mejia, who currently leads the Heartland Conference in home runs with three. He leads the team with a .359 batting average and has driven in 12 runs this season, which is tied for fourth in the conference.
 
In the opposite dugout, the Rattlers are led by Maldonado, who currently ranks second in the conference in batting average (.430) and first in both hits (32) and total bases (42).
 
The pitching staff may be one of the strengths for St. Mary's, as they boast a team ERA of 1.78 led by starter Carl O'Neal. O'Neal has appeared in six contests this season and holds a 0.69 ERA through 39.1 innings of work. Reliever Jonathan Perez has also been a key asset for St. Mary's, appearing in 12 games while holding a 0.63 ERA, a 3-0 record, and five saves on the season.
 
For the War Hawks, senior Spencer Smith has been very consistent this season. Smith has made six starts on the year and has a 3.13 ERA. He has currently has allowed just 34 hits in 37.1 innings of work while holding opponents to a .239 batting average.