Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Thursday, April 6
Bowling Green, KY
6:00 PM CT
Middle Tennessee
at
Western Kentucky
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Blue Raiders Set for Series at WKU
4/5/2023 7:09:00 PM | Baseball
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Fresh off a home sweep over FIU, Middle Tennessee Baseball will look to continue its Conference USA winning streak when it visits rival Western Kentucky in Bowling Green.
First pitch for the series-opener Thursday is set for 6:00 p.m. at Nick Denes Field. Another 6:00 p.m. scheduled start is set for Friday before Saturday's series finale at 1:00 p.m.
The games will be streamed on Facebook Live. WGNS 101.9 FM / 1450 AM (Murfreesboro), WGNS 100.5 FM (Smyrna), GoBlueRaiders.com and the Varsity Network App will have the radio broadcast.
All-Time Against WKU
The Blue Raiders trail WKU by a razor-thin 72-71 margin in the all-time series. Middle Tennessee has taken each of the past two series vs. its rival to the north, winning two of three at Reese Smith Jr. Field both in 2022 and on March 17-19 this season. Conference USA's conference scheduling format sees each team play a geographic rival in two separate three-game series this year, with MTSU and WKU being paired.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Freshman Patrick Johnson is set to start Thursday's series-opener. Jaden Hamm and Eriq Swan will start Friday and Saturday's games, respectively.
Quick Hitters
OF Eston Snider had a career-day in MTSU's sweep-clinching win over FIU on Sunday. Going 5-5 with four RBI, the sophomore had an RBI single in the Raiders' five-run ninth. Those five hits are tied for the most by a player in a single game in C-USA this year. Adding to a 2-3 afternoon Saturday, Snider hit .700 over the week's four games.
Middle Tennessee currently leads C-USA in team batting average, both across all games (.319) and in conference play (.340). In league play, Snider (.474) and SS Brett Coker (.462) are first and second in batting average, with Coker's 18 hits leading C-USA and Snider's 1.282 OPS ranking second.
Six Blue Raiders are currently hitting .300 or higher going into the WKU series. Coker's .394 clip leads the team, Mabry follows closely at .393, with Jeremiah Boyd, Luke Vinson, DJ Wright and Briggs Rutter all rounding up the group.
Through 27 games this season, the Blue Raiders have used the same starting infield in each contest. Wright has maned first base, Mabry has played at second, Coker has been the everyday shortstop and Gabe Jennings has occupied the third base position. Defensively, Wright (10) and Coker (9) have fielded the most double plays of anyone in league play.
Scouting the Hilltoppers
After jumping out to a 14-4 start this season, the Hilltoppers have dropped 10 of their most recent 12 games, dating back to the series in Murfreesboro.
WKU took a game off the Raiders in the opening C-USA series before winning a single game against LA Tech one week later. However, they absorbed a sweep at UTSA before dropping a midweek contest at Vanderbilt this past Tuesday.
Senior LHP Devyn Terbrak threw a no-hitter for the Hilltoppers on March 12 against South Dakota State. The 14-strikeout outing marked the first Hilltopper no-hitter since March 3, 2009. The Perryville, Mo. native leads the squad in innings pitch (41.1) and carries a robust 2.83 ERA and 1.04 WHIP.
Graduate student infielder Drew Reckart is leading the squad and sixth in C-USA in batting average at .376. The Ohio State transfer is also tied for ninth in the league in slugging percentage with a .604 clip, and has 24 RBI and three home runs on the year. Reckart has four teammates who join him in hitting above .300, and leads the team with a 1.096 OPS.
The Hilltoppers' .298 batting average ranks third among all C-USA teams.
Next Up
After this weekend, the Blue Raiders will continue its seven-game road swing with a midweek clash against Georgia State in Decatur, Ga. First pitch for Tuesday's game at GSU is set for 3:00 p.m. CT.
MTSU's next weekend series is set for April 14-16 at UTSA, with the Blue Raiders next in action at home on April 18 vs. Lipscomb.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Stay up to date with the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_Baseball), Facebook (Blue Raider Baseball) and Instagram (@MT_Baseball).
First pitch for the series-opener Thursday is set for 6:00 p.m. at Nick Denes Field. Another 6:00 p.m. scheduled start is set for Friday before Saturday's series finale at 1:00 p.m.
The games will be streamed on Facebook Live. WGNS 101.9 FM / 1450 AM (Murfreesboro), WGNS 100.5 FM (Smyrna), GoBlueRaiders.com and the Varsity Network App will have the radio broadcast.
All-Time Against WKU
The Blue Raiders trail WKU by a razor-thin 72-71 margin in the all-time series. Middle Tennessee has taken each of the past two series vs. its rival to the north, winning two of three at Reese Smith Jr. Field both in 2022 and on March 17-19 this season. Conference USA's conference scheduling format sees each team play a geographic rival in two separate three-game series this year, with MTSU and WKU being paired.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Freshman Patrick Johnson is set to start Thursday's series-opener. Jaden Hamm and Eriq Swan will start Friday and Saturday's games, respectively.
Quick Hitters
OF Eston Snider had a career-day in MTSU's sweep-clinching win over FIU on Sunday. Going 5-5 with four RBI, the sophomore had an RBI single in the Raiders' five-run ninth. Those five hits are tied for the most by a player in a single game in C-USA this year. Adding to a 2-3 afternoon Saturday, Snider hit .700 over the week's four games.
Middle Tennessee currently leads C-USA in team batting average, both across all games (.319) and in conference play (.340). In league play, Snider (.474) and SS Brett Coker (.462) are first and second in batting average, with Coker's 18 hits leading C-USA and Snider's 1.282 OPS ranking second.
Six Blue Raiders are currently hitting .300 or higher going into the WKU series. Coker's .394 clip leads the team, Mabry follows closely at .393, with Jeremiah Boyd, Luke Vinson, DJ Wright and Briggs Rutter all rounding up the group.
Through 27 games this season, the Blue Raiders have used the same starting infield in each contest. Wright has maned first base, Mabry has played at second, Coker has been the everyday shortstop and Gabe Jennings has occupied the third base position. Defensively, Wright (10) and Coker (9) have fielded the most double plays of anyone in league play.
Scouting the Hilltoppers
After jumping out to a 14-4 start this season, the Hilltoppers have dropped 10 of their most recent 12 games, dating back to the series in Murfreesboro.
WKU took a game off the Raiders in the opening C-USA series before winning a single game against LA Tech one week later. However, they absorbed a sweep at UTSA before dropping a midweek contest at Vanderbilt this past Tuesday.
Senior LHP Devyn Terbrak threw a no-hitter for the Hilltoppers on March 12 against South Dakota State. The 14-strikeout outing marked the first Hilltopper no-hitter since March 3, 2009. The Perryville, Mo. native leads the squad in innings pitch (41.1) and carries a robust 2.83 ERA and 1.04 WHIP.
Graduate student infielder Drew Reckart is leading the squad and sixth in C-USA in batting average at .376. The Ohio State transfer is also tied for ninth in the league in slugging percentage with a .604 clip, and has 24 RBI and three home runs on the year. Reckart has four teammates who join him in hitting above .300, and leads the team with a 1.096 OPS.
The Hilltoppers' .298 batting average ranks third among all C-USA teams.
Next Up
After this weekend, the Blue Raiders will continue its seven-game road swing with a midweek clash against Georgia State in Decatur, Ga. First pitch for Tuesday's game at GSU is set for 3:00 p.m. CT.
MTSU's next weekend series is set for April 14-16 at UTSA, with the Blue Raiders next in action at home on April 18 vs. Lipscomb.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Stay up to date with the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_Baseball), Facebook (Blue Raider Baseball) and Instagram (@MT_Baseball).
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