Upcoming in Gray Wolves Baseball: Lourdes hits the road on Monday following a pair of Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference doubleheaders at Mercy Field last weekend. Lourdes will travel to UNOH on Monday afternoon to meet the Racers in a twinbill. The Gray Wolves return to Mercy Field on Tuesday and host Rochester (Mich.) in WHAC action.
Head Coach Jeremy Snow: In his third season on the Lourdes bench,
Jeremy Snow has a 55-104 (.346) record at the helm of the Gray Wolves, as well as in his career as a collegiate head coach. He is the second head coach in Lourdes program's history and is the winningest coach in program history.
Probable Starters: Lourdes expects to hand the baseball to
Zach Brown (1-2, 3.29 ERA, 28 K's) for game one of Monday's doubleheader at UNOH.
Liam Bloom (0-2, 4.76 ERA, 7 K's) will handle duties on the mound in game two. Brown has made five appearances this season, starting in all five games while Bloom has seen action in four games, including two starts. Lourdes has yet to determine starters for their series against Rochester.
Series Notes: Lourdes owns a 2-21 record all-time against the Racers entering Monday's matchup. UNOH has won 11 straight games in the series. The last Gray Wolf victory over the Racers came on Apr. 1 2015, a 6-3 triumph over 23rd-ranked UNOH. The Gray Wolves lead the all-time series against Rochester 11-7. Lourdes has won seven straight in the series dating back to 2016. Lourdes swept the season series in each of the last two seasons.
Wrapping Up Last Week: Lourdes got off to a rocky start in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference, posting a 1-3 record in its opening four games. The Gray Wolves fell to Cornerstone in game one of a twinbill before responding with a 5-1 triumph over the Golden Eagles. Lourdes then dropped both ends of a double header against Lawrence Tech on Sunday, March 24.
Scouting UNOH: The Racers enter the matchup winners of three of their last five games. Prior to a 13-3 setback at Eastern Michigan University in its most recent contest, the Racers opened WHAC play with a double header split against Aquinas before sweeping Cleary in a WHAC twinbill. Through 26 games this season, Michael Knollman leads the team with 30 hits, 22 runs , 21 RBI, and a .357 batting average. On the mound for UNOH, Mitch Ebben and Jason Reyes lead the way with a pair of victories. Ebben and Reyes also rank one-two on the team with 37 and 27 strikeouts, respectively. Reyes leads the staff with a 3.80 ERA, allowing just nine earned runs in 21.1 innings pitched.
Scouting Rochester: The Warriors are set to host Concordia (Mich.) and Spring Arbor in a pair of twinbills prior to making the trip to Toledo to meet Lourdes. Rochester has dropped five of its last six contests, including a doubleheader split against Siena Heights. Through 25 games, Bruce Kadela leads the team in hits, RBI, runs scored offensively. DJ Gotz and Carter Scillion are currently tied for first on the team, hitting at a .333 clip. Rochester has featured a deep group on the mound as 18 athletes have seen action in the pitching rotation.
Changing Schedules: Originally scheduled to be played on Saturday and Sunday, Lourdes was forced to move is games against UNOH and Rochester to Monday and Tuesday due to inclement weather. The Gray Wolves have had 19 games either postponed or cancelled this season.
Among The WHAC Leaders: Cameron Gallo has positioned himself among the leaders in the WHAC in multiple offensive categories following his hot start to the season. Gallo ranks third in the WHAC in batting average (.429), seventh in slugging percentage (.589), second in triples (3) and sixth in hits per game (1.41).
A Slow Start In The WHAC: Lourdes is off to a 1-3 start in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference following its first two doubleheaders last weekend. Lourdes began the 2018 campaign with a 3-0 record in conference after sweeping UM-Dearborn in three straight games.Â
A Pair Of Solid Performances: Zach Brown and
Travis Thompson combined for a solid pitching performance in Lourdes' 5-1 victory over Cornerstone last week. Brown went six innings, fanned eight batters, allowed just three hits and one earned run during the contest. He also picked up his first victory of the season. Thompson entered in the seventh inning and slammed the door, tossing the final three innings and striking out four batters. The freshman reliever also picked up his first career save and didn't allow a hit.
Swiping Bags: Michael Davis has been effective for the Gray Wolves on the bases this season. Davis currently leads the team with nine stolen bases. Davis also ranks second in the conference, stealing 0.56 bases per outing.Â
Tough To Hit Off Of: Zach Brown has established himself as a force on the bump for the Gray Wolf pitching staff this season. Brown currently leads the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference in opponents batting average, allowing opposing players to hit at just a .182 clip when he is pitching.
Lots Of Extra Bases: Lourdes has 43 extra base hits thus far this season. Lourdes leads the WHAC with 11 triples this season despite playing significantly less games. The Gray Wolves also have seven more extra base hits than their opponents this season.
This and That: the Gray Wolves last met Northwestern Ohio in the WHAC Tournament in 2018 ... Lourdes has five players hitting .325 or above this season ... 14 pitchers have made multiple appearances on the mound for Lourdes.
