Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Tuesday, April 12
Nashville, TN
6 p.m.
Middle Tennessee
at
Lipscomb University
Photo by: Kaitlyn Hungerford/MT Athletic Communications
Blue Raiders Stay Within State Lines This Week
4/11/2022 6:30:00 PM | Baseball
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – An opportunity for revenge and a chance to maintain momentum vs. Conference USA opponents is what's in store for Middle Tennessee baseball this week.
SCHEDULE
April 12 at Lipscomb - 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
April 14 vs. Charlotte - 6 p.m. (CUSA.TV)
April 15 vs. Charlotte - 6 p.m. (CUSA.TV)
April 16 vs. Charlotte - noon (CUSA.TV)
After losing their home opener vs. Lipscomb March 1, the Blue Raiders will head to Nashville to face the Bison April 12. Following the midweek matchup, MT hosts Charlotte for another critical conference series April 14-16 in Murfreesboro.
Winning their last three Conference USA series, the Blue Raiders are on a roll and are tied for third in the tight C-USA standings. For MT, the last two series vs. WKU and at Marshall have been decided by the rubber match while the Blue Raiders won their first two games against UAB.
Peyton Wigginton has gone the distance in his last two outings. Wigginton, a senior from Franklin, Tenn., stepped up to help the Blue Raiders win the series over WKU. The lefty struck out six and allowed just one earned run against the Hilltoppers. Getting the nod once again April 10 at Marshall, Wigginton struck out five and allowed two earned runs in the seven-inning game against Marshall to clinch the series. Wigginton now has five complete games in his five-year Blue Raider career.
Peyton Wigginton and Zach Keenan both sit in the top 10 in the program's career strikeout list.
Wigginton, who has served in a swing role this season on the pitching staff, is up to 236 career strikeouts. After consecutive complete games, Wigginton moved into sixth place on the list. With 46 games started, the left-handed pitcher out of Franklin, Tenn., also is tied for fifth on the program's list of most games started in a career and seventh in innings pitched (290.1).
After tying a career high of 11 strikeouts March 25 at UAB and five punchouts in seven shutout innings against WKU April 1, Keenan moved up to ninth on the all-time list with 223 career strikeouts. Keenan is three strikeouts away from passing current eighth placeholder Steve Sonneberger. Keenan, a right-hander from Suwanee, Ga., has pitched 233.2 innings over his five seasons.
James Sells has emerged as one of MT's most dependable arms. A freshman out of Winchester, Sells set down his first 16 batters faced and totaled 6.1, one hit innings, including eight strikeouts, his first start of the season at Tennessee Tech March 29. Serving primarily as a reliever this season, Sells returned to the role out of the bullpen April 8 at Marshall as the right-hander allowed one hit and struck out two in 2.2 innings pitched.
Sixteen members of the 2022 Blue Raider roster came to Murfreesboro through the junior college level. Ten of them are playing in their first seasons wearing blue, black and white. After standout seasons at Johnson County CC, Jackson Galloway and Wyatt Morgan are teammates once again in the 'Boro. Both student-athletes are contributing to this season's Blue Raider team. Galloway is batting .295 with three home runs and 14 RBI while Morgan is right behind, batting .290, two home runs and 10 RBI.
Mason Speirs holds the team lead in batting average (.333) and OPS (.989) while tied for first in home runs (six). Speirs has played 26 games with 23 starts this season between catcher and designated hitter. At the halfway point of the season, the catcher from Westminster, CO, is close to doubling his hit total (29) of his two combined previous seasons (15).
Fausto Lopez, Brett Coker and JT Mabry have started all 30 games for the Blue Raiders this season in their respective positions. Lopez carries a streak of 101 consecutive starts in a Blue Raider uniform over the past three seasons. Lopez needs 19 more starts in a row to crack the top 10 program list for consecutive games played.
MT's bats have scored 10-or-more runs in a game five times this season, including a 13-run performance vs. Old Dominion. The Blue Raiders have scored in bunches in those games, scoring 11 runs in their final two innings vs. Old Dominion March 20, eight runs in the first two innings at Auburn March 11, seven runs in the final two innings vs. Western Carolina March 2 and an 11-run seventh inning vs. Illinois Feb. 26. All of those games have resulted in Blue Raider wins.
LOOKING AT LIPSCOMB The Blue Raiders get their second look at Lipscomb in 2022.
18-14 overall and 7-5 in the ASUN, the Bison have won six of their last seven. Since facing MT on March 1, Lipscomb notable games were being swept by then-No. 18 Georgia, defeated then-No. 15 Louisville, fell to top-ranked Tennessee and most recently swept Eastern Kentucky in a weekend series.
Malik Williams has started in all 32 games played this season and is batting .364 with five home runs and 34 RBI. Trace Willhoite has a team-leading seven home runs in 32 games this season and has hit six doubles.
Probable starter Kaleb Kantola is 1-3 on the season with a 6.00 earned run average and 23 strikeouts. Top Bison relievers include Matthew Bohnert, who has a 2.70 ERA in 12 appearances and Tyler Legere, who posts a 3.00 ERA in 12 innings pitched.
Lipscomb is tied for third in the ASUN standings.
CHECKING OUT CHARLOTTE April has not been kind to Charlotte baseball. The 49ers find themselves in an unfamiliar spot heading into the series against MT. On its longest losing streak since 2015, Charlotte has been swept by both UTSA and then-No. 18 Southern Miss with a midweek loss at Winthrop in between since the first of the month.
Before the skid, Charlotte won series against Western Kentucky and Old Dominion. Charlotte won seven of its final eight games before the start of C-USA.
Batting .282 as a team, Nate Furman is Charlotte's leader in batting average (.381) and runs (31). Cam Fisher has an OPS of 1.035, 10 home runs and 32 RBI while Austin Knight and Jake Cunningham each have seven home runs.
On the mound, Charlotte has bounced around starters as 10 49ers have started a game this year. Will Lancaster has made eight starts and holds a 3-1 record along with a 4.05 ERA and 30 strikeouts. Spencer Giesting has 52 strikeouts and a 5.12 ERA in eight appearances.
Promotions for this weekend include Mental Health Awareness Day Thursday, trivia night on Friday and Salute Saturday concludes the series at Reese Smith Jr. Field.
SCHEDULE
April 12 at Lipscomb - 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
April 14 vs. Charlotte - 6 p.m. (CUSA.TV)
April 15 vs. Charlotte - 6 p.m. (CUSA.TV)
April 16 vs. Charlotte - noon (CUSA.TV)
After losing their home opener vs. Lipscomb March 1, the Blue Raiders will head to Nashville to face the Bison April 12. Following the midweek matchup, MT hosts Charlotte for another critical conference series April 14-16 in Murfreesboro.
Winning their last three Conference USA series, the Blue Raiders are on a roll and are tied for third in the tight C-USA standings. For MT, the last two series vs. WKU and at Marshall have been decided by the rubber match while the Blue Raiders won their first two games against UAB.
Peyton Wigginton has gone the distance in his last two outings. Wigginton, a senior from Franklin, Tenn., stepped up to help the Blue Raiders win the series over WKU. The lefty struck out six and allowed just one earned run against the Hilltoppers. Getting the nod once again April 10 at Marshall, Wigginton struck out five and allowed two earned runs in the seven-inning game against Marshall to clinch the series. Wigginton now has five complete games in his five-year Blue Raider career.
Peyton Wigginton and Zach Keenan both sit in the top 10 in the program's career strikeout list.
Wigginton, who has served in a swing role this season on the pitching staff, is up to 236 career strikeouts. After consecutive complete games, Wigginton moved into sixth place on the list. With 46 games started, the left-handed pitcher out of Franklin, Tenn., also is tied for fifth on the program's list of most games started in a career and seventh in innings pitched (290.1).
After tying a career high of 11 strikeouts March 25 at UAB and five punchouts in seven shutout innings against WKU April 1, Keenan moved up to ninth on the all-time list with 223 career strikeouts. Keenan is three strikeouts away from passing current eighth placeholder Steve Sonneberger. Keenan, a right-hander from Suwanee, Ga., has pitched 233.2 innings over his five seasons.
James Sells has emerged as one of MT's most dependable arms. A freshman out of Winchester, Sells set down his first 16 batters faced and totaled 6.1, one hit innings, including eight strikeouts, his first start of the season at Tennessee Tech March 29. Serving primarily as a reliever this season, Sells returned to the role out of the bullpen April 8 at Marshall as the right-hander allowed one hit and struck out two in 2.2 innings pitched.
Sixteen members of the 2022 Blue Raider roster came to Murfreesboro through the junior college level. Ten of them are playing in their first seasons wearing blue, black and white. After standout seasons at Johnson County CC, Jackson Galloway and Wyatt Morgan are teammates once again in the 'Boro. Both student-athletes are contributing to this season's Blue Raider team. Galloway is batting .295 with three home runs and 14 RBI while Morgan is right behind, batting .290, two home runs and 10 RBI.
Mason Speirs holds the team lead in batting average (.333) and OPS (.989) while tied for first in home runs (six). Speirs has played 26 games with 23 starts this season between catcher and designated hitter. At the halfway point of the season, the catcher from Westminster, CO, is close to doubling his hit total (29) of his two combined previous seasons (15).
Fausto Lopez, Brett Coker and JT Mabry have started all 30 games for the Blue Raiders this season in their respective positions. Lopez carries a streak of 101 consecutive starts in a Blue Raider uniform over the past three seasons. Lopez needs 19 more starts in a row to crack the top 10 program list for consecutive games played.
MT's bats have scored 10-or-more runs in a game five times this season, including a 13-run performance vs. Old Dominion. The Blue Raiders have scored in bunches in those games, scoring 11 runs in their final two innings vs. Old Dominion March 20, eight runs in the first two innings at Auburn March 11, seven runs in the final two innings vs. Western Carolina March 2 and an 11-run seventh inning vs. Illinois Feb. 26. All of those games have resulted in Blue Raider wins.
LOOKING AT LIPSCOMB The Blue Raiders get their second look at Lipscomb in 2022.
18-14 overall and 7-5 in the ASUN, the Bison have won six of their last seven. Since facing MT on March 1, Lipscomb notable games were being swept by then-No. 18 Georgia, defeated then-No. 15 Louisville, fell to top-ranked Tennessee and most recently swept Eastern Kentucky in a weekend series.
Malik Williams has started in all 32 games played this season and is batting .364 with five home runs and 34 RBI. Trace Willhoite has a team-leading seven home runs in 32 games this season and has hit six doubles.
Probable starter Kaleb Kantola is 1-3 on the season with a 6.00 earned run average and 23 strikeouts. Top Bison relievers include Matthew Bohnert, who has a 2.70 ERA in 12 appearances and Tyler Legere, who posts a 3.00 ERA in 12 innings pitched.
Lipscomb is tied for third in the ASUN standings.
CHECKING OUT CHARLOTTE April has not been kind to Charlotte baseball. The 49ers find themselves in an unfamiliar spot heading into the series against MT. On its longest losing streak since 2015, Charlotte has been swept by both UTSA and then-No. 18 Southern Miss with a midweek loss at Winthrop in between since the first of the month.
Before the skid, Charlotte won series against Western Kentucky and Old Dominion. Charlotte won seven of its final eight games before the start of C-USA.
Batting .282 as a team, Nate Furman is Charlotte's leader in batting average (.381) and runs (31). Cam Fisher has an OPS of 1.035, 10 home runs and 32 RBI while Austin Knight and Jake Cunningham each have seven home runs.
On the mound, Charlotte has bounced around starters as 10 49ers have started a game this year. Will Lancaster has made eight starts and holds a 3-1 record along with a 4.05 ERA and 30 strikeouts. Spencer Giesting has 52 strikeouts and a 5.12 ERA in eight appearances.
Promotions for this weekend include Mental Health Awareness Day Thursday, trivia night on Friday and Salute Saturday concludes the series at Reese Smith Jr. Field.
Players Mentioned
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