HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University baseball team opens a four-game homestand on Wednesday by hosting Eastern Kentucky University at the Bill Aker Baseball Complex in a nonconference matchup.
 
First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.  A link to live stats is available at nku.statbroadcast.com, and the ASun.TV broadcast will be brought to you by John Asalon.  Fans unable to make it out to the ballpark can follow @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter for live in-game updates.
 
NKU, which will be looking to avenge a 15-4 loss to Eastern Kentucky a week ago, fell to 9-18 on the year and 0-3 in the Atlantic Sun Conference after suffering a three-game sweep at North Florida.  Logan Spurlin batted .444 (2-for-9) with one double, one RBI and one run scored to lead the Norse offense, while Cody Kuzniczci and Cole Bauml each finished 5-for-14 (.357) with three doubles apiece.  Kuzniczci drove in a five runs against the Ospreys as Bauml scored three times.
 
ABOUT EKU: The Colonels enter the midweek action 10-17 overall and 4-7 in the Ohio Valley Conference after winning two of three games against Tennessee Martin last week.  Eastern Kentucky jumped out to a 10-2 lead through six innings in the opener before the Skyhawks scored two runs in each the seventh and the eighth for a 10-6 victory.  The Colonels posted a 9-2 win in the first game of a Saturday doubleheader before UT Martin rebounded with a 7-3 win to avoid the series sweep in the night cap.
 
TJ Alas boasts a .404 batting average to go along with nine doubles, two triples and six home runs to lead the EKU offense, and he has driven in 20 runs and scored a team-leading 25 times.  Mandy Alvarez is batting .337 with eight doubles and eight home runs, and he leads the team with 31 RBIs.  Kyle Nowlin has successfully stolen eight bases in 11 attempts to lead the Colonels, and he is hitting .293 with six doubles, nine home runs, 19 RBIs and 19 runs scored.
 
NKU/EKU SERIES: EKU holds a 16-11-1 advantage the all-time series with NKU after claiming a 15-4 victory over the Norse in Richmond, Kentucky, on March 31.  The Norse dropped the first three games before posting a 2-0 victory during the 1973 season.  The rare tie of the series came in the second game of a doubleheader on March 28, 1978 with a score of 10-10.
 
After a 23-year hiatus, the two teams renew the rivalry last season.  NKU captured a 13-11 win in Richmond in 11 innings on March 19 on RBI doubles from Caleb Lonkard and Logan Spurlin.  EKU avenged its loss the following month, scoring four runs in the top of the ninth inning to claim a 9-6 win.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST EKU: Logan Spurlin led the NKU offense, going 2-for-4 from the plate with the lone NKU double of the night, and he drove in a pair of runs one week ago.  Cole Bauml and Kyle Colletta recorded the other two RBIs for the Norse, who collected 11 hits and left eight base runners stranded as EKU handed NKU a 15-4 loss.
 
Zac Edwards recorded just one out in his first start for NKU, surrendering six runs on seven hits.  Nick Beard and Kevin Herren each posted scoreless innings of relief and gave up just two hits apiece as Herren recorded four strikeouts.  Aric Harris pitched a perfect seventh inning and struck out two batters.
 
Kenny Hostrander went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored to lead EKU, while Doug Teegarden finished 2-for-4 from the plate and scored three times.  Shea Sullivan, Mandy Alvarez and Ben Fischer each recorded two-hit days for the Colonels as well.  TJ Alas drove in a game-high four runs, while Alvarez added three RBIs to his season total.
 
Matt Lynch allowed four runs on 10 hits in his first victory of the season for EKU, which jumped out to an 11-0 lead after the first two innings.  He struck out four NKU batters and walked just one in 7.2 innings on the mound.  Taylor Blair closed out the game for the Colonels, giving up just one hit and walking one.
 
ADDING ON: Cole Bauml added three doubles against North Florida over the weekend to bring his nation-leading total to 22. Bauml, who is ineligible to be included in the NCAA statistics since NKU is a reclassifying institution, leads Nick Lynch of UC Davis, who has currently recorded 19 doubles over 30 contests.  He is averaging 0.81 two-baggers per contest, which tops Lynch's 0.63.
 
The senior centerfielder from Muenster, Saskatchewan, holds a 38-game on-base streak dating back to last season as well.  Bauml boasts a .387 batting average with one triple and a team-leading six home runs, which is third in the conference.  He has driven in 18 runs and scored 25 times for the Norse, while he has successfully stolen eight bases in nine tries.
 
HOME SWEET HOME: NKU is 4-1 this season at the Bill Aker Baseball Complex.  The Norse opened the home portion of their 2015 schedule with an 18-2 victory over Cincinnati-Clermont before posting a 4-3 walk-off win against Miami Hamilton on March 19. 
 
Five days later, NKU handed in-state rival Morehead State an 8-3 loss prior to dropping a 15-9 decision against Wright State the next day.  The Norse defeated Xavier, 4-2, on March 29 to complete its first-ever NCAA Division I sweep in their last home contest.
 
Caleb Lonkard and Anthony Vagnier have each gone 4-for-9 with one double in the four NKU home games.  Vagnier, who has hit two home runs at the Bill Aker Baseball Complex this season, has batted in six runs and scored four times.  Cole Bauml is batting .368 (7-for-19) at home, and he has recorded three doubles and two homers, while Trey Ganns went 4-for-11 (.364) from the plate.
 
FIVE-RUN THRESHOLD: NKU is 8-3 this season when holding opponents to five or less runs, including a perfect 3-0 mark when allowing two or less runs.  When limiting the other team to five or fewer runs, the Norse have defeated Campbell (6-5), CSU Bakersfield (8-2), Cincinnati-Clermont (18-2), Miami Hamilton (4-3) and Morehead State (8-3).  NKU did not allow more than five runs in any game of its three-game sweep against Xavier as well.
 
UP NEXT: NKU welcomes Kennesaw State for the second straight season for a three-game Atlantic Sun series, starting Friday at 3 p.m.  Saturday's contest, which will feature the annual Strike Out Cancer game, is set for a 1 p.m. start time, while Sunday's Bark in the Park contest will begin at noon.  Links to live stats are available at nku.statbroadcast.com, and the ASun.TV broadcast for each contest can be found at NKUNorse.com.