Complete Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Baseball: Lourdes wraps up its 11-game road trip to begin the season on Wednesday afternoon with a non-conference contest at Thomas Moore.  Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference play begins this weekend, with the Gray Wolves hosting 22nd-ranked Indiana Tech on Saturday afternoon for the home opener.  Lourdes then takes to the road on Sunday for a twinbill at Northwestern Ohio.

Head Coach Josh Bradford: In his fourth season in the Lourdes dugout, Josh Bradford has a 54-62 (.466) record at the helm of the Gray Wolves, as well as in his career as a collegiate head coach.  He is the third head coach in Lourdes program's history.

Probable Starters: Brenden Holland (LHP, 0-1, 4.50) will take the mound to start Wednesday's game at Thomas More on what will be a staff day throughout.  Wyatt Smith (RHP, 1-0, 5.79) will be handed the baseball to get things going for the Gray Wolves in the home opener against Indiana Tech on Saturday before Joey Oehlers (LHP, 1-2, 14.04) toes the rubber in game two.  Anderson Strunk (LHP, 1-1, 7.50) is set to pitch game one at Northwestern Ohio on Sunday before Holland returns to the mound to start the nightcap.

Series Notes: Thomas More won the only previous meeting between the two schools, a 13-4 decision at Mercy Field on March 16, 2021.  Indiana Tech holds a 31-1 all-time mark against the Gray Wolves dating back to April 27, 2012.  The Warriors have won three straight meetings between the two schools after sweeping last season's doubleheader 9-8 and 21-15 in Fort Wayne, Ind.  Indiana Tech is 18-1 against Lourdes at Mercy Field.  Northwestern Ohio is 27-2 all-time against Lourdes in a series that began March 28, 2012.  The Racers have won the last 17 games between the two teams, including 19-2 and 14-3 triumphs in Lima, Ohio last season.  Northwestern Ohio is 17-1 against the Gray Wolves in Lima.

Wrapping Up Last Week: Anderson Strunk tossed six shutout innings Monday (March 6) as the Gray Wolves won at Montreat 10-0.  Despite a Joel Suraganan home run, the Gray Wolves were limited to just five hits on Wednesday (March 8) in an 11-4 setback at Campbellsville.  Lourdes closed its spring trip on Thursday (March 9) with an 11-7 victory at Lindsey Wilson as Joey Oehlers struck out 10 in five innings while Josh Hare and Suraganan had three RBI each.

Scouting Thomas More: The Saints enter the week having split a doubleheader at Freed-Hardman on Saturday and host IUPUC on Tuesday before entertaining the Gray Wolves.  Gavin Vogelgesang leads Thomas More batting .367 while Bailey Martin has hit four home runs has driven in a team-leading 26 runs.  The pitching staff sports a 5.39 earned run average.

Scouting Indiana Tech: The Warriors snapped a two-game skid on Sunday with a 7-1 victory at 22nd-ranked Oklahoma City.  Indiana Tech visits Mid-America Christian on Tuesday and Indiana-Southeast on Thursday prior to visiting Lourdes.  Christian Mojica paces the Indiana Tech offense with a .455 batting averaged while Jacob Daftari has hit seven homers and driven in 14 runs.  The pitching staff carries a 5.47 ERA.

Scouting Northwestern Ohio: The Racers have been idle since March 9 after dropping a 6-5 decision to Point Park in Chillicothe, Ohio.  Northwestern Ohio travels to Siena Heights on Saturday before hosting the Gray Wolves.  Diego Clariot leads the Racers batting .321 this season while Tyler Grigalis has three homers and 11 RBI.  The pitching staff sports a 6.64 earned run average this season.

Lourdes in WHAC Openers: Lourdes is 2-8 all-time in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference openers.  The Gray Wolves picked up a victory in their first league game of 2022, defeating Aquinas 5-4 on the road.

Home Openers: Lourdes is 6-4 all-time in home openers.  The Gray Wolves have won their first game at Mercy Field in four straight seasons after defeating Bethel (Ind.) 6-4 to open last year's home slate.  Lourdes did not play any home contests in the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season.

Facing Ranked Foes: Lourdes will be facing its second ranked opponent of the season on Saturday against 22nd-ranked Indiana Tech after falling twice to seventh-ranked Georgia on its spring trip.  The Gray Wolves are 3-40 all-time against the NAIA top-25.  Lourdes has dropped seven straight against ranked opponents since a March 11, 2020 win at #16 Bryan.

Swinging the Hot Bats: Steve Haugh enters the week hitting a team-leading .429 (12-for-28) this season with two home runs, 13 runs batted in, and seven runs scored.  Joel Suraganan is hitting .406 with three homers, eight RBI, and eight runs scored.

Gray Wolves Tabbed Eighth in WHAC Preseason Poll: Lourdes was picked to finish eighth in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference in the 2023 preseason poll conducted of the league's head coaches.  The Gray Wolves were slotted just behind Cornerstone and just ahead of Aquinas.  Northwestern Ohio was tabbed as the preseason favorite.

This and That: Steve Haugh has reached base safely in all 10 games this season ... Haugh and Suraganan have six-game hitting streaks entering the week ... Wyatt Smith has 15 strikeouts in 14 innings of work with opponents hitting .268 against him.