Northern Kentucky University Athletics

Week 8 Series Notes | Live stats | Live audio

April 4-6
Highland Heights, Ky. – Bill Aker Baseball Complex (300)
NKU (8-18, 2-4 Atlantic Sun) vs. Stetson (12-18, 2-4 Atlantic Sun)
Series Record: SU leads 3-0
Last Meeting:  SU 7, NKU 6 (May 12, 2013)
 
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University baseball team continues its nine-game homestand this weekend, as the Norse welcome Stetson to the Bill Aker Baseball Complex for a three-game Atlantic Sun Conference series.
 
NKU and Stetson will take to the field for the opener on Friday at 3 p.m.  First pitch for Saturday's contest is scheduled for 1 p.m. before the two teams meet for the series finale on Sunday at noon.  Links to live stats and John Asalon's broadcast will be available at nkunorse.com.
 
NKU, winners of its last two games, improved to 8-18 overall after defeating Ball State, 4-3, in a rain-shortened contest on Wednesday afternoon.  Logan Spurlin went 2-for-4 with a two-run single in the bottom of the seventh to lift the Norse to victory.  Caleb Kellogg drew three walks, was hit by a pitch and scored the winning run.  Cody Cooper was credited with the win, pitching 2/3 of an inning in relief with one strikeout.  NKU is 2-4 in the Atlantic Sun.
 
Stetson enters the weekend 12-18 overall and 2-4 in the Atlantic Sun.  The Hatters captured a pair of midweek victories, defeating South Florida by a score of  6-3 on Tuesday and 2-1 on Wednesday.  Stetson took a 2-0 lead into the top of the ninth inning in Wednesday's contest, but South Florida took advantage of an error to cut its deficit in half before the Hatters forced the final out of the game.
 
Patrick Mazeika powers the Stetson offense as he boasts a .390 batting average with a team-high 11 doubles, which ranks third in the Atlantic Sun.  He has driven in 12 runs and scored 20 times for the Hatters, while Kyle Zech is hitting .329 with two doubles, 10 RBIs and 16 runs.  Zech ranks third in the conference in stolen bases, having successfully swiped a team-leading nine bases in as many attempts.  Josh Powers holds a .307 batting average, and he has collected seven doubles, scored nine times and driven in 10 runs.
 
The Norse are expected to face right-handed pitcher Mitchell Jordan on Friday.  Jordan holds a 3.63 earned run average and a 2-3 record over 34.2 innings on the mound.  He has struck out 30 batters, just behind Sunday's probable starter righty Taylor Cockrell's 33 strikeouts.  Cockrell is also 2-3 on the year with a 4.12 ERA in 43.2 innings.  Left-hander Austin Perez will take the mound for Stetson on Saturday looking for his first win of the year.  Perez has posted a 5.84 ERA over seven starts with 19 strikeouts over 37 innings of work.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST STETSON: Garret Russini's sacrifice fly in the seventh inning led Stetson to a 7-6 victory over NKU to complete the series sweep on May 12, 2013, at Melching Park, which gave the Hatters a 3-0 advantage in the all-time series with the Norse.
 
With the score tied at 6-all in the bottom of the seventh, Darby McCormick started the inning for Stetson with a single.  Brett Loeding then walked Patrick Mazeika to send McCormick to second, and both advanced a base on a James Rasmussen sacrifice bunt.
 
Russini stepped to the plate and sent a 1-0 pitch into Quint Heady's glove, but McCormick was able to score to give the Hatters a 7-6 lead.
 
NKU threatened in the top of the ninth inning.  Cody Kuzniczci singled through the right side to start, and Zac Asman's sacrifice bunt sent Ryan Hinz, who pinch ran for Kuzniczci, to second base.  With two outs, Tyler Warmoth hit back-to-back batters to load the bases, but the inning ended before the Norse could bring home the tying or go-ahead runs.
 
Brett Cisper's two-run double down the left-field line gave NKU a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning, but Stetson answered in the bottom of the frame with five runs to take a 5-2 advantage.
 
The Norse added two runs in the top of the third to pull to within one (5-4) after Heady singled and scored on a Brad Clement hit. Kuzniczci followed with a double, and Clement went to third on the play.  Logan Spurlin scored Clement when he reached on a fielder's choice.
 
The Hatters' lead was stretched to 6-4 in the bottom of the inning on a Carlos Garmendia RBI single, but Brandon Wood and Caleb Lonkard came home in the fourth to even the game.
 
Garmendia finished 2-for-2 with an RBI to lead Stetson, while McCormick, Tyler Bocock and K'shawn Smith went 2-for-4.  Bocock scored twice and Smith batted in two runs on the day.
 
Warmoth earned his second win of the series after pitching three scoreless innings of relief.  He allowed just two hits, walked one batter and struck out one.  He also recorded the win in Stetson's 3-2 walk-off victory over the Norse two days prior.
 
Kuzniczci led the NKU offense after going 3-for-5 with a run scored and a double.  Clement finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs and one run.
 
REACHING 450: Wednesday's victory over Ball State gave NKU head coach Todd Asalon his 450th victory with the program.  Asalon is in his 14th season with the Norse, and he holds a 450-337-1 overall record leading the team.  He spent six years as the baseball head coach at Thomas More College prior to returning to NKU, so he now holds a 594-429-1 career record.
 
Asalon was named just the second Norse head coach in the program's 42-year history after ABCA Hall of Fame coach Bill Aker retired following the 2000 season.  He led the Norse to the NCAA Division II tournament eight times and has produced 10 players, including nine pitchers, who have been selected in the Major League Baseball Draft.
 
CLIMBING THE LIST:  After seeing four at-bats on Wednesday against Ball State, Zac Asman has now been to bat 599 times, moving into sole possession of 10th place on the career list for that category for the Norse.  Asman has been to the plate 90 times this season, and he saw 194 appearances as a freshman before collecting 173 and 142 as a sophomore and junior, respectively.
 
He entered Wednesday's contest tied with Kevin Dusold (2007-09) at 595, and he needs just 15 more at-bats to surpass Jason Cisper (2008-10), who finished his career with 613 at-bats.  Jon Back (2005-08) currently holds the career record, having recorded 778 appearances at the plate for the Norse.
 
CURRENT STREAKS:  NKU boasts three players with hitting streaks of 11 or more games and four who have reached based in 10 or more consecutive contests.  Jordan Procyshen has recorded hits in the last 14 games to lead the Norse.  Caleb Kellogg drew three walks and was hit by a pitch on Wednesday, so his 11-game hitting streak stayed intact against Ball State since he did not record an official at-bat, and Logan Spurlin finished 2-for-4 from the plate to extend his hitting streak to 11 as well.
 
Spurlin has safely reached base in each game he has appeared in this season, having missed two games due to an illness, and he has reached base in 28 straight games, dating back to last season.  Procyshen has reached in 15 consecutive contests, while Kellogg and Zac Asman follow with on-base streaks of 12 and 10, respectively.
 
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS:  The NKU-Stetson series marks the annual Strike Out Cancer weekend, presented by the American Cancer Society, at the Bill Aker Baseball Complex, and fans are encouraged to wear pink to support the cause.  The American Cancer Society will be set up to share its information with fans both Saturday and Sunday.  T-shirts will be available for a donation with the American Cancer Society.
 
Fans will also have the opportunity to participate in #SundayFunday Bingo, presented by Toppers Pizza, at every Sunday game this season.  Bingo cards will be available upon entrance into the complex and are based on plays occurring during the game.  The first two fans to complete their cards will receive a gift card to Toppers Pizza.