Baseball Hosts Troy In First Weekend Series Of Season

NEW ORLEANS – Looking for their first 6-0 start since the 1987 campaign, the University of New Orleans baseball team hosts Troy University in their first weekend series of the season. First pitch for Friday's series opener is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. with Saturday and Sunday's start time slated for 12 p.m. It is the first time Troy is coming to play in New Orleans since the 2010 season.

The Privateers look for their series victory against the Trojans since the 2008 eight season, and their first-ever weekend sweep. Troy leads the all-time series 19-8, taking two-of-three in Troy, Alabama last season.

"I think this should be a good series," head coach Blake Dean said. "We can't underestimate them, if we don't come out strong on offense and defense they can beat us. We have to be smarter at the plate, yea we have been getting a lot of extra base hits but we are striking out way too much."

The Privateers enter the weekend series after scoring a season-high 16 runs off 17 hits against Jackson State in a midweek contest. UNO has not posted double-digit runs in three consecutive outings, the first streak since the 2009 season.

At the plate, UNO is batting .375 with 20 doubles, two triples, seven home runs and 51 RBI. Junior outfielder Tristan Clarke paces the offense with a .556 batting average and leads the team with two home runs and a 1.111 slugging percentage. Junior catcher John Cable, sophomore outfielder Orynn Veillon and senior infielder Samuel Capielano are all hitting over .400 with marks of .438, .421 and .412.

On the mound, the Privateers' pitchers have a combined ERA of 2.79, with three players pitching five or more innings and have a sub 2.00 ERA. Junior right handed pitcher Shawn Semple has 10 strikeouts in six innings with an opposing batting average of .105, while sophomore southpaw Bryan Warzek also has a 0.00 ERA after a six-inning appearance over the weekend.

Troy enters the weekend series with a 2-2 mark, splitting a four-game series with Xavier.

On the mound, Troy's pitchers combined for a 3.65 ERA, allowing 15 earned runs in 37 innings with 48 strikeouts and 13 walks. The Trojan starters are averaging over 10 strikeouts per nine innings, fanning 23 opponents in 20.1 innings over the opening weekend. Corey Childress and Even Hebert, projected to be the Trojans Friday and Saturday starters, both struck out seven batters in their starts last weekend, while lance Johnson logged three scoreless innings over three games.

At the plate, the visitors come in with a .177 batting average with 10 extra base hits. Brody Binder paces the offense with a .500 batting average, two doubles, a home run and three RBI while Brandon Lockridge has a .375 batting average with a team-high six hits.

The Privateers hit the first time this season on Tuesday, Feb. 28 when they travel to take on South Alabama at 6:30 pm. UNO returns to Maestri Field at First NBC Ballpark on Friday, Mar. 3 when they begin a three-game series against Alcorn State with first pitch scheduled for 6:30 p.m.. For tickets to future Privateers athletic events, contact the UNO Athletics Ticket Office at (504) 280-GAME (4263) and season tickets can be purchased over the Internet by clicking HERE.
                                                                                                                                    
--www.UNOPrivateers.com--