Baseball Takes On Texas In Non-Conference Series

AUSTIN, Texas – The University of New Orleans baseball team continues its season-long 11 game road swing this weekend, as the Privateers take on the University of Texas in a three-game non-conference series. The series begins on Friday, April 21, with a 7 p.m. start time, with Saturday starting at 4 p.m. and Sunday's finale slated for 1:30 p.m. All three games will be available to watch on the Longhorn Network.

Friday's game will be seventh time the two sides will play against each other, and just the third time during the regular season. The first time the UNO played Texas was in the 1984 College World Series, with the Privateers traveling to Austin, Texas, for the 1988 and 1989 NCAA Regionals. UT has won all six outings between the teams.

"[Texas] is going to be a tough challenge for us," head coach Blake Dean said. "They will be a well-coached team, obviously [David] Pierce is a great coach and will have them ready to go. They have a lot of talent on their roster and their team ERA is low. We have to figure out a way to manufacture runs. If we are able to get a lead over them we have to figure out a way to hold onto the lead. We need to find a reliable option out of the bullpen."

New Orleans (19-18) takes a hiatus from Southland Conference after being swept by McNeese last weekend

Offensively, New Orleans is hitting .298 as a team (385-1291) with a .452 slugging percentage off the strength of 74 doubles, 11 triples and 32 home runs. Junior catcher John Cable leads four Privateers who are hitting over .300 with a .349 batting average, followed by senior infielder Samuel Capielano, junior infielder Owen Magee and senior outfielder Hezekiah Randolph with marks of .336, .328 and .301 respectively. Magee and sophomore outfielder Orynn Veillon both have 11 doubles, with Capielano posted a team-best three triples and junior outfielder Tristan Clarke boasting a team-high eight home runs and 30 RBI.

On the mound, UNO sports a 4.66 ERA while tallying 289 strikeouts with 122 walks in 330.1 innings of work to date. Sophomore left handed pitcher Bryan Warzek and junior right handed pitcher Shawn Semple both have five wins, with Warzek posting a team-low 2.14 ERA in a team-best 59.0 innings while Semple leads the Privateers with 61 strikeouts. Freshman right handed pitcher Reeves Martin plus junior right handed pitchers William Griffin and Jarred Taylor all have two saves, which ties for the most on the team.

Texas (25-15) finishes its four-game homestand with the weekend series against UNO after defeating Texas State 2-0 during their midweek contest. Overall, UT has won two in a row after defeating Baylor 5-3 in their weekend-series finale.

The Longhorns are hitting .247 as a unit (311-1259) with a .388 slugging percentage coming from 75 doubles, five triples and 31 home runs. Michael McCann leads UT with a .311 batting average, while Travis Jones posts a team-best 13 doubles, David Hamilton adds two triples and Kacy Clemens chips in seven home runs with 30 RBI.

On the mound, Texas has a team-ERA of 2.92 with 306 strikeouts and 143 walks in 351.2 innings of work. Nolan Kingham and Nick Kennedy both have five wins for the Longhorns, with Kingham logging a team-best 56.1 innings of work, while Beau Ridgeway boasting a team-low 1.41 ERA and a team-high eight saves. Morgan Cooper leads UT with 68 strikeouts in 55.1 innings.

The Privateers' road trip continues on Wednesday, April 26, when they take on Jackson State. UNO returns to First NBC Ballpark on Friday, May 5, when they begin a SLC series against Houston Baptist with first pitch slated 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.