Baseball Takes On Central Arkansas In Weekend Series

CONWAY, Arkansas – The University of New Orleans baseball team continues its six-game road swing on Friday, Mar. 24, when the Privateers begin a three-game Southland Conference series at the University of Central Arkansas. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 1 p.m., pushed up from the 6 p.m. original start time due to impending weather, with Saturday and Sunday's start times slated for 4 p.m. and 1 p.m.

Central Arkansas leads the all-time series 10-1, with the Privateers winning the last game of the 2016 weekend series for the programs' first victory against the Bears. In UNO's lone victory against UCA, senior right handed pitcher Hunter Medine went four innings and allowed two runs off three hits to get the win. Senior infielder Samuel Capielano has eight career hits against Central Arkansas with a .348 career batting average against the foe, while senior Hezekiah Randolph has scored six runs in eight career games.

"They are a well-coached team that plays well in their park," head coach Blake Dean said. "They always have a very tough team who competes from the first inning until the last. We have to create some type of offense. Our pitching has done a pretty good job so far this season, we need to apply more continuous pressure on the offensive side of the ball."

New Orleans (13-9, 3-3 Southland Conference) continues the road trip after dropping 7-2 and 5-2 decisions against Missouri State and No. 24 Arkansas.

The Privateers boast one of the top offenses in the Southland Conference, leading the league in doubles (57) while ranking second in runs scored (152), slugging percentage (.458), hits (235), total bases (359), runs batted in (140) and fourth in on base percentage (.389) and batting average (.300). Capielano leads the team, and ranks in the top-10 of the SLC with 31 hits and a .373 batting average, ranking fifth and eighth respectively. Junior infielder Owen Magee is second in the conference in RBI with 24, while sophomore outfielder Orynn Veillon is third with 10 doubles. Junior outfielder Tristan Clarke has a team-best five homes and .636 slugging percentage, ranking fourth and sixth in the league.

On the mound, UNO is tied for the most strikeouts in the conference (188) and is fourth in opposing batting average (.249) and sixth in ERA (4.14). Sophomore southpaw Bryan Warzek leads the Privateers, and the Southland Conference, with a 0.89 ERA, while his 36 strikeouts and .196 opposing batting average cracks the top-five at fourth and fifth. Junior right handed pitcher Shawn Semple has three more strikeouts than Warzek to place him third in the league, while his 2.87 ERA and .224 opposing batting average both rank in the conferences' top-15.

Like the Privateers, Central Arkansas (10-13, 1-5 Southland Conference) also played two midweek games prior to the weekend matchup, with the Bears defeating Southeast Missouri 5-4 and Mississippi Valley 9-2.

UCA is hitting .248 as a team with 197 hits, 32 doubles, 12 triples, 11 home runs and 124 RBI. Hunter Strong paces the Bears' offense with 35 hits, the most in the Southland Conference, while his 10 doubles matches Veillon for the third-most in the conference and his .372 batting average ranks ninth. Michael Haun leads the league with six triples, with Keaton Presley leading the SLC with 20 walks and is second with 25 runs scored.

On the mound, Central Arkansas has a team ERA of 5.62 with 178 strikeouts, 97 walks and an opposing batting average of .278. Ty Tice leads the Bears with 34 strikeouts, ranking sixth in the conference, followed by Tyler Gray whose 30 strikeouts rank ninth.

Following the weekend series, the road swing concludes on Wednesday, Mar. 29, when the Privateers take on Southern Mississippi with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m. New Orleans is back at Maestri Field on Friday, Mar. 31 when UNO hosts Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 6:30 to start a Southland Conference series. 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.