Privateers Baseball Hosts Southern, Tulane in Mid-Week Games

SOUTHERN AT NEW ORLEANS (MARCH 8, 6:30 PM)
TULANE AT NEW ORLEANS (MARCH 9, 6:30 PM)-CST
MAESTRI FIELD AT FIRST NBC BALLPARK | NEW ORLEANS, LA.

LIVE STATS | AUDIO | VIDEO (TUE.) | VIDEO (WED.) | GAME NOTES (TUE.) | GAME NOTES (WED.) | WEATHER

The University of New Orleans baseball team (9-2) is setting up for their first five-game week with two mid-week games against Southern on Tuesday and 27^th-ranked Tulane on Wednesday. First pitch for both games will be at 6:30 p.m. at Maestri Field at First NBC Ballpark and the Tulane game will be broadcast on Cox Sports Television.  The Wednesday bout will also be the first game of the First NBC Cup.
 
The Privateers capped off their first sweep over a power five conference school on Sunday when they won 8-5 over Pittsburgh. Daniel Martinez is tied for second in the nation in saves after picking up his fifth when he pitched the final three innings. The Privateers scored 33 runs over the weekend and are second in the Southland in runs scored (96).
 
"Our team has been playing very well and swinging the bat well," said Coach Blake Dean. "These mid-week games will be the biggest question marks because of depth on the mound. That's the area that has concerned us the most, but we'll figure out a way."
 
Hezekiah Randolph has scored 16 runs and is tops in the Southland individually. Randolph is also one of eight regulars in the lineup who are currently hitting over .300. Kyle Bracey is in the top five nationally in batting average (.541) and on-base percentage (.646). Bracey has 20 hits on the season and has a hit in every game for UNO.
 
The Privateers are tentatively going with left-hander, Hunter Medine against Southern and Bryan Warzek against Tulane. Medine has battled injuries throughout the majority of his collegiate career. This season, Hunter has made one appearance when he threw a scoreless inning against Southern Miss back on Feb. 24.
 
"They're going to have to use this opportunity to get better and get more innings," said Dean. "We'll have to run some guys out there. Hunter's got very good stuff and he throws a three-pitch mix. He just has to be able to locate and hopefully get his confidence going."
 
The Privateers have played Southern 42 times in program history with UNO taking the better of 25 of those match-ups. The last meeting took place at the Urban Youth Invitational in 2015 when the Privateers defeated the Jaguars 4-1.
 
"We want to go out there and put on a good exhibition. If we continue playing the way we are, we're going to be hard to beat. It's going to come down to clean defense, swinging the bats and getting decent pitching. If we do that we're going to win some games."
 
This week may feature more than just the opponents on the diamond for the Privateers. Rain chances are at 50% or higher from Tuesday through Saturday in the New Orleans area. The Privateers will be at home to open conference this weekend against Sam Houston State.
 
The Jaguars are coached by Roger Cador who has been a staple at the Baton Rouge school for more than three decades. This season, Southern has gotten off to a 2-8 start after losing two of three in their conference opener against Grambling. The Jaguars went 0-3 in the MLB Urban Youth Invitational to open the season.
 
Jose De La Torre has been one of the more impactful bats in the Southern lineup and has collected nine hits in 23 at-bats. De La Torre was one of two Jaguars to be voted to the SWAC Preseason Team as he earned second team honors. Robinson Mateo leads Southern in hits with 12 and he has added four steals in five attempts.
 
Tulane will also face a two-game mid-week stretch. The Green Wave will take on Louisiana-Lafayette at home before making the short trip to the Lakefront. Tulane swept Pepperdine over the weekend to move to 7-4 and are receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll.
 
The Green Wave sport a .305 team batting average entering the week. Stephen Alemais is hitting .462 and co-leads the team in RBI with 11. Jake Willsey has cranked four home runs and the Green Wave are 12-for-16 in stolen base attempts. Tulane's Wednesday starter is yet to be announced.
 
Season tickets for the 2016 campaign are available for as low as $125 and single-game tickets start at $5. For additional information, contact the UNO Atheltics Ticket Office at (504) 280-GAME (4263) or log on to the internet at http://www.unoprivateers.com.
 
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