ABILENE, Texas – McMurry University Baseball returns home for the first time since March 9, as the War Hawks will host the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders for a three-game series at Walt Driggers Field Friday and Saturday.
Friday's opening game gets underway with a first pitch of 7 p.m. with Saturday's doubleheader slated to begin at 1 p.m. Video will only be available for Saturday's doubleheader, while all three games will have live stats. All links can be found at mcmurrysports.com.
NOTES:
LAST WEEK: McMurry is still seeking its first ASC win after being swept by Hardin-Simmons last weekend.
AT THE PLATE: Third baseman Sam Hillyer leads McMurry with a .341 batting average, followed by right fielder Mike Gonzales at .333. Gonzales leads the War Hawks with 18 RBIs, while left fielder Matthew Chalk tops the team with four home runs.
ON THE MOUND: J.T. Barnes leads McMurry's hurlers with a 3.96 ERA and 3-3 record. Devin Molina and Hunter Brooks have been effective out of the bullpen, with ERAs of 2.31 and 3.65, respectively. Chris Lewis has the most strikeouts with 23.
LAST 10: Although McMurry is just 1-9 in their last 10 games, the bats of Hillyer, Chalk and second baseman Jordan Speck have been on fire. Speck has a batting average of .447 during that span, as well as scoring 12 runs on 17 hits. He has added two home runs and nine RBIs during the stretch. Hillyer is batting .368 with two home runs and seven RBIs, while Chalk is hitting .357 with three home runs and 11 RBIs during that time frame.
BASES LOADED: McMurry is batting .455 (10-for-22) when the bases are loaded this season. They are also batting .600 (33-for-55) with a runner on third with less than two outs.
HITTING STREAK: Speck is currently on a nine-game hitting streak. It matches that of HIllyer's which was snapped in the finale against HSU.
SCOUTING UMHB: The Cru enter the weekend 6-18, 1-8 ASC after defeating UT Dallas earlier in the week. Landon Dieterich is the only Crusader batting over .300 at .310, and leads the team with 19 RBIs. Aaron Edelmon sports a team best 4.06 ERA with a 1-5 record.
