HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University baseball team travels to Youngstown, Ohio for a three-game Horizon League series against the Penguins at Eastwood Field this weekend.
The opener is set for 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The series continues on Saturday with a 2 p.m. first pitch, followed by the finale on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Links to live stats and audio are available at NKUNorse.com. An audio broadcast will be available for Saturday and Sunday's games only.
Gameday Information
Northern Kentucky Norse (12-20, 2-10 Horizon League)
at Youngstown State Penguins (6-19, 1-7 Horizon League)
Eastwood Field | Youngstown, Ohio
Friday, April 15 – 5:30 p.m.
NKU: Jr. RHP Justin Watts
YSU: Jr. LHP Joe King
Saturday, April 16 – 2 p.m.
NKU: Sr. RHP Tyler Miller
YSU: Jr. RHP Jeremy Quinlan
Sunday, April 17 – 1 p.m.
NKU: So. RHP Pat Kelley
YSU: TBA
LAST TIME OUT: The Norse took a week off from midweek play, having last competed on April 8-10 when they took one of three games from UIC at home. In the opener, Justin Watts allowed just two runs over 6.0 innings of work, but the Norse struggled to cross the plate, falling 4-1. NKU took game two of the series, 12-6, with the help of Dominic Mercurio's 4-for-5, two-RBI showing. The finale saw the Norse fall, 6-3, after a four-run seventh lifted the Flames to victory.
SCOUTING THE PENGUINS: YSU's slate has been plagued by inclement weather as the Penguins have had each of their last four League games canceled, including a three-game series at Oakland. Entering the weekend, YSU has played four games in the month of April and are on a three-game skid.
The Penguins are batting .210 as a team led by Billy Salem who has a .293 average, .375 on-base percentage and 27 hits. Andrew Kendrick is the squad's RBI leader with 14 and a team-best three home runs.
Teams are batting .292 against YSU pitchers who own a collective 6.09 ERA. Friday starter Joe King has a team-high 38.2 innings pitched with 25 strikeouts and a 4.19 ERA. Saturday's projected starter Jeremy Quinlan has tossed 37.2 innings and owns a 4.06 ERA.
SERIES HISTORY: The Norse are 1-0 against the Penguins with the only meeting between the two teams coming in the 1977 postseason when NKU claimed a 4-3 victory.
REMAINING SCHEDULE: NKU will play 14 of its remaining 22 games on the road. YSU is one of two League opponents the Norse have not yet played this season. Milwaukee awaits the Norse on Friday, April 29, for the opener of the final three-game series of the 2016 slate. Following the series against the Panthers, NKU will make return trips to UIC and Valpo for doubleheaders on May 7 and 8 and host Milwaukee and YSU for twinbills May 13 and 15 to conclude the season.
STEPPING UP: Last week, Tito Montgomery went 5-for-10, clubbing two triples and a double en route to a 1.000 slugging percentage across four games. The junior has become a staple in the Norse lineup this season, earning the starting nod in NKU's last 11 games for a total of 18 starts in 32 games this season. Montgomery and has seen his average climb from .205 to .271 across the last seven games while his team-high 14 walks have helped him post a .405 on-base percentage, the second-best clip on the team.
HAUETER ON THE ROAD: Will Haueter has seen success on opponents' turf this year, batting .368 on the road compared to .296 overall. Twenty-one of Haueter's 32 hits have come in road contests as the redshirt freshman was aided by a season-opening 16-game hitting streak before the Norse opened play at home.
STRONG STARTS: Over the last two weeks, dating back to a March 29 contest at Kentucky, the Norse pitching staff has posted a 3.87 team ERA. Tyler Miller and Justin Watts are coming off a pair of strong starts in that span. Miller threw 13.1 innings across two starts last week and held opponents to just three runs. The senior has picked up the win in two of his last three appearances.
Meanwhile, Watts has thrown 13.0 innings in his last two starts and held opponents to a .182 clip while fanning 11. Opponents have managed four earned runs against Watts in his last 13.0 frames. The junior leads the NKU staff in League play with a 3.12 ERA and team-high 26.0 innings pitched with 24 strikeouts and nine earned runs.
UP NEXT: Following the YSU series, Northern Kentucky returns home for a pair of midweek tilts. NKU hosts Xavier on Tuesday, April 19 at 3 p.m. and Dayton on Wednesday, April 20 at 3 p.m.
