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EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville baseball team will play a pair of seven-inning games as part of a non-conference doubleheader Wednesday afternoon at Austin Peay. The first contest is slated to being at 4 p.m. at Raymond C. Hand Park in Clarksville, Tenn., with the second tilt to follow.
Evansville (15-25) dropped two games of three-game set with Missouri Valley Conference foe Wichita State over the weekend, as the Aces won the middle game of the series, 6-3, Saturday, but fell in a pair of one-run decisions, 5-4 and 6-5, Friday and Sunday, respectively. Redshirt sophomore
Kevin Kaczmarski led UE by going 8-for-12 with a home run, two RBI and three runs scored in the series. Senior
Kyle Lloyd earned Evansville’s lone win on the mound, tossing 8.1 innings with eight strikeouts around two walks in his start Saturday afternoon.
Evansville enters the double dip at Austin Peay with a .272 batting average, including 42 doubles, seven triples and 12 homers for a .343 slugging percentage. The Aces are getting on base at a .365 clip, have stolen 32 bases in 49 chances and are fielding .970 as a squad.
Kaczmarski leads UE with a .362 batting average, .515 slugging percentage, 11 doubles, four home runs and 10 stolen bases. The Cary, Ill., native has recorded multiple hits in four-straight games and is currently on a 17-game hitting streak. Seniors
Jason Hockemeyer and
Chris Pearson are also hitting over .300 at .310 and .308, respectively. Hockemeyer has tallied four doubles, two triples and 22 RBI, and leads the team with a .450 on-base percentage. Pearson has legged out five doubles, ranks second on the team with three homers and is tied for the team lead with 26 RBI. Redshirt junior
Johnny Day, who is hitting .266, has also driven in 26 runs.
On the mound, Evansville pitchers have combined for a 4.68 ERA, .290 opposing batting average and 292 strikeouts in 344.0 innings. Junior left-hander
Cole Isom, who is scheduled to start for the Aces in the opener, is 2-4 on the year with a 5.45 ERA. Isom has tallied 29 strikeouts over 38.0 innings, but opponents have posted a .336 batting average against him. Fellow junior
Ryan Billo is slated to get the ball for game two and enters the twin bill with a 1-3 record, 10.02 ERA and 15 strikeouts in his 20.2 innings of work.
Austin Peay (28-12) took two of three from Belmont in an Ohio Valley Conference series last weekend, as the Governors lost the series opener, 5-2, but rebounded for 5-3 and 10-6 victories. Outfielder Cody Hudson was named the OVC Co-Player of the Week, after finishing the series 7-for-11 at the plate.
APSU is hitting .290 as a team with 71 doubles, five triples and 26 long balls for a .407 slugging percentage. Austin Peay owns a .388 on-base percentage and have swiped 45 bases in 68 tries. Defensively, the Governors had committed 54 errors in their 40 games for a .965 fielding percentage.
Craig Massoni leads APSU with a .364 batting average, .578 slugging percentage, seven home runs and 43 RBI. Cody Hudson boasts a .352 average with a team-best 16 doubles and 15 stolen bases, while Jordan Hankins is hitting .351 with nine doubles, six home runs and 33 RBI. Hankins has also drawn 28 walks for a team-high .460 on-base percentage. Rolando Gautier is also hitting over .300 at .309 and has notched 11 doubles and 19 RBI.
Austin Peay pitchers have combined for a 4.78 ERA, .269 opposing batting average and 305 strikeouts over 360.0 innings. Junior righty Ryan Quick is scheduled to start against Evansville is game one and enters Wednesday with a 3-2 record and 8.36 ERA. Quick has fanned 28 opposing hitters in 28.0 innings and made four starts this year.
Evansville leads the all-time series, 38-20-2, and owns a 21-12 advantage in games at Raymond C. Hand Park. The Aces have won four-straight meetings and eight of the last nine contests.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS (UE STARTER LISTED FIRST)
GAME 1 – Cole Isom (LHP, Jr., 2-4, 5.45 ERA) vs. Ryan Quick (RHP, Jr., 3-2, 8.36 ERA)
GAME 2 – Ryan Billo (RHP, Jr., 1-3, 10.02 ERA) vs. TBA
