HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University baseball team heads to Lexington, Kentucky, for its final road game of the season as the Norse face Kentucky for the fourth time in 2015.
 
First pitch is set for 7 p.m.  Links to live stats and John Asalon's audio broadcast are available at NKUNorse.com.  The contest will air on the SEC Network as well.  Fans can also track the game's progress by following @NKUNorseGameDay on Twitter as well.
 
NKU dropped to 17-30 overall and 5-13 in the Atlantic Sun Conference after suffering a three-game sweep to Florida Gulf Coast in Fort Myers, Florida, over the weekend.  Trey Ganns went 4-for-10 (.400) with one double, one walk and one run scored to lead the Norse offense against the Eagles, and he recorded his first collegiate stolen base in Saturday's contest.  David Head (4-for-12) and Cody Kuzniczci (3-for-9) each batted.333 for NKU with Kuzniczci driving in three runs and collecting two doubles.
 
ABOUT KENTUCKY: The Wildcats are 27-23 on the year and 12-14 in the Southeastern Conference after claiming one win in a three-game home series against Georgia.  Kentucky opened the weekend with a 6-2 win over the Bulldogs on Friday before suffering a 12-3 defeat on Sunday.  Georgia scored a run in the top of the ninth in the finale to force the game into extra innings and then put up five runs in the 10th for a 6-1 victory.
 
Ka'ai Tom leads five Wildcats batting over .300 with a .365 batting average to go along with 13 doubles, one triple and four home runs.  He has successfully stolen 15 bases in 16 attempts, driven in 46 runs and scored 39 times to lead Kentucky in each category.  Kyle Barrett is batting .344 with 12 doubles, a team-leading three triples, and one home run, while JaVon Shelby holds a .317 batting average.  Evan White is hitting .313 and Dorian Hairston holds a .306 average to round out the heavy hitters.
 
NKU-KENTUCKY SERIES: Tuesday will mark the 13th meeting between NKU and Kentucky with the Wildcats winning each of the previous 12 games in the series.  The two teams first met during the 1972 season as Kentucky shut out the Norse in an 8-0 victory in Camp Springs, Ky.  The Wildcats completed the season sweep on May 3, when Kentucky defeated NKU, 5-1, in Lexington.
 
NKU and Kentucky faced each other six more times through the 1980 season with the closest contest coming in 1979 when the Wildcats held on for a 3-2 victory over the Norse, before taking a break until the 2005 season when the two teams met again.  NKU and Kentucky resumed its rivalry earlier this season with the Wildcats claiming wins in each contest.
 
EARLIER THIS SEASON: NKU picked up a three-game series with Kentucky March 7-8, 2015, after its trip to New Mexico State was canceled due to weather-related travel complications.  The Wildcats opened the weekend with a 6-0 win on Saturday before the two teams met for a Sunday doubleheader. 
 
The Norse scored two runs in the top of the ninth inning but could not bring home the tying run as Kentucky held on for a 7-6 victory in Sunday's opener.  A four-run eighth inning in the nightcap secured a 9-4 win for the series sweep.
 
Cole Bauml batted .417 (5-for-12) with two doubles and two home runs to lead the NKU offense earlier this year, and he drove in three runs, scored four times and stole two bases.  Ryan LeFevers collected two hits, including one double, scored three times and stole one base over two starts.
 
Pierce Knisley pitched 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up just one hit and walking one batter, over two appearances out the bullpen.  Evan Korson struck out two batters, did not allow a run and surrendered one hit in a two-inning relief appearance.
 
Dorian Hairston went 3-for-4 (.750) over two games against the Norse, and he scored three times and batted in two runs.  Ka'ai Tom finished 4-for-10 (.400) for the Wildcats with seven RBIs, two runs scored and two stolen bases.  Connor Heady scored five times, while JaVon Shelby brought home four runs.
 
Zach Brown gave up just two hits and struck out 11 batters in a complete-game shutout effort in the first game of the series.  Dustin Beggs allowed three runs on five hits with eight strikeouts over seven innings for the win in the doubleheader opener, while Kyle Cody earned the nightcap victory after giving up just one run on four hits and striking out eight batters in seven innings for the Wildcats.
 
BROTHERLY LOVE: Redshirt junior Quint Heady will see a familiar face in a Kentucky uniform when the two teams take the field on Tuesday.  Heady's younger brother, Connor, is a sophomore infielder for the Wildcats.
 
The older Heady has seen action in 40 games and started 29 times in both the infield and outfield for the Norse this season.  He is batting .281 with five doubles, one triple, two home runs, 17 RBIs and 16 runs scored.  He has successfully stolen 11 bases in as many times, and he has boasts a .964 fielding percentage.  Quint Heady finished 2-for-5 with one home run, two runs scored and one RBI to keep NKU in Saturday's contest against FGCU.
 
Connor Heady has started 45 of the 46 games he has played in for the Wildcats this season.  On the year, he is batting .230 with two doubles, two home runs, 11 RBIs and 27 runs scored.  He has drawn 20 walks and been hit by a pitch 13 times to lead the team in that category.
 
NEW HORIZON: The NKU athletic department announced that it will become a member of the Horizon League effective July 1, 2015.  The Norse will become the 10th member of the league, joining Cleveland State University, University of Detroit Mercy, the University of Illinois at Chicago, Oakland University, Valparaiso University, the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Wright State University and Youngstown State University.
 
UP NEXT: NKU wraps up the 2015 season with a three-game Atlantic Sun series at the Bill Aker Baseball Complex, starting with a 3 p.m. contest on Thursday.  Friday's first pitch is set for 1 p.m., and Saturday's Senior Day will begin at noon.  Links to live stats for each contest are available at nku.statbroadcast.com, and John Asalon's audio broadcast for Thursday and Friday can be found at NKUNorse.com.  Saturday will be featured on ASun.TV.