Week 5 Game Notes |
Atlantic Sun Weekly Release
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University baseball team concludes its spring break at home with contests against Butler and Eastern Michigan that were originally scheduled to be played in Ypsilanti, Mich., but inclement weather forced the change.
NKU will begin play on Friday with a noon contest against Butler, followed by a game against Eastern Michigan after a short break. Saturday's action will see NKU taking on Eastern Michigan at noon with Butler and Eastern Michigan to follow.
The weekend will conclude with a game between Butler and Eastern Michigan at noon on Sunday. The Norse will face Eastern Michigan to close out the weekend. First pitch is slated for 3:30 p.m.
The Norse enter the weekend with a 2-14 record after dropping two decisions against Tennessee Tech in midweek action. The Golden Eagles used a four-run sixth inning to break open Wednesday's game and posted a 7-1 victory after cruising to a 13-2 win on Tuesday.
ABOUT BUTLER: The Bulldogs, a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference, are 5-9 on the year after dropping their last four games, including two against No. 20 Arizona earlier this week. Two of Butler's wins came against Lipscomb, a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
Jack Dillion is batting .424 to lead the Butler offensive attack. He has hit two home runs and a double while collecting nine RBIs and eight runs. Jimmy Risi has added a team-high 15 RBIs and five homers.
Billy Laing leads the way on the mound for the Bulldogs. He has compiled a 2.81 earned run average over 16 innings of work. He has recorded 24 strikeouts, which leads the team, while only allowing five runs on nine hits. Laing is holding opposing batters to a .155 batting average.
NKU and Butler have met four times in the past with each team collecting two wins. The Norse won the first meeting, 4-2, during the 1978 season, while the Bulldogs earned a 4-0 victory in the most recent meeting in 1980.
ABOUT EASTERN MICHIGAN: The Eagles are 6-9 this season after sweeping a three-game series on the road against Cincinnati last weekend. Eastern Michigan, a member of the Mid-American Conference, was scheduled to play Morehead State on Tuesday and Wednesday but rain forced a cancellation.
Adam Sonabend leads the Eagle offense with .364 batting average. He has collected one double and one home run on the season to go with 10 RBIs and eight runs. Sam Ott leads the team with 13 runs scored and five doubles, and he has recorded 10 RBIs as well.
Kendall Lewis (1-0) has posted a 1.38 ERA over 13 innings of work in two starts, while Neil Butara (2-2) has a 4.88 ERA on the season. Butara leads the team in innings pitched (24), strikeouts (15) and games started (4).
NKU and Eastern Michigan have never met in baseball.
GOING THE DISTANCE: Brett Cisper struck out 10 batters and only allowed two runs in the first complete-game effort for NKU this season and in the NCAA Division I era in the nightcap of Sunday's doubleheader. He did not get the win, however, as the Norse dropped a 2-1 decision in the final game of the series. In the top of the sixth, Cisper (0-2) retired the Thundering Herd in order, each striking out swinging.
Cisper, a junior from Cincinnati, currently holds a 6.10 ERA in four starts in his first season on the mound for NKU. He leads the team with 18 strikeouts.
FRESHMEN STEP UP: With injuries plaguing the Norse lineup this season, NKU's freshmen have had a chance to shine early in the season and have stepped up to the challenge.
Three of NKU's seven hits in the first game against Tennessee Tech came from the newcomers, and the lone Norse run was scored by
Logan Spurlin on Wednesday.
NKU was limited to 11 hits over two games on Sunday against Marshall, and 10 of those came from NKU's freshmen. Heady collected a total of four hits on the day, while
Hunter Morey and Spurlin each added two.
Cody Kuzniczci and
Ryan Hinz recorded hits in the second game.
Three of the top five hitters for the Norse are freshmen as well. Heady is second on the team with a .273 batting average. Morey ranks fourth, batting .250 over the last five games, followed by
Conor Ledger's .231.
