Complete Notes
Upcoming in Gray Wolves Baseball: Lourdes opens its 13th season of intercollegiate baseball this weekend.  The Gray Wolves travel to West Virginia to face West Virginia Tech for a three-game series with a single game against the Golden Bears on Saturday and a doubleheader on Sunday.

Head Coach Josh Bradford: In his fifth season in the Lourdes dugout, Josh Bradford has a 70-82 (.461) 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: Wyatt Smith (RHP, 5-2, 4.89 in 2023) will be handed the baseball to get things going for the Gray Wolves on Saturday.  On Sunday, Brenden Holland (LHP, 0-2, 6.87 in 2023) is scheduled to start the opener of the twinbill while Caleb Loboschefski (RHP, 0-3, 12.75 in 2023) will toe the rubber in game two.

Series Notes: Lourdes will be meeting West Virginia Tech on the diamond for the first time ever this weekend.

Wrapping Up 2023: Lourdes finished the 2023 season with a 20-26 record overall and a 15-17 mark in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference, placing eighth.  Lourdes did not qualify for the WHAC tournament.

Scouting West Virginia Tech: The Golden Bears enter the weekend series having won five straight games after scoring a 30-5 and 10-6 doubleheader sweep at home against Davis & Elkins on Wednesday afternoon.  Francesco Calderon leads West Virginia Tech with a .462 batting average and three home runs while Logan Spurlock is hitting .429.  William Gray has posted a .390 average thus far this year, having also hit three homers while driving in 16 runs.  On the mound, Chase Herndon is 1-0 with a 5.25 earned run average and 10 strikeouts in 12 innings while Robert Kelley is 1-1 with a 5.28 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 15.1 innings of work.

Returning Award Winners: Lourdes had a pair of players earn All-WHAC accolades in 2023.  Joel Suraganan was a First Team All-WHAC performer after hitting a team-leading .395 with four home runs and 38 runs batted in.  Wyatt Smith picked up Second Team All-WHAC honors on the mound.  The right-hander was 5-2 with a 4.89 earned run average in 57 innings of work, striking out 50 and holding opponents to a .266 batting average.

Gray Wolves Tabbed Eighth in WHAC Preseason Poll: Lourdes was picked to finish eighth in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference in the 2024 preseason poll conducted of the league's head coaches.  The Gray Wolves were slotted just behind Cleary and just ahead of Cornerstone.  Concordia (Mich.) was tabbed as the preseason favorite by a unanimous vote.

Lourdes in Season Openers: The Gray Wolves improved to 6-6 all-time in season openers after defeating Pikeville 20-10 in the 2023 season opener.  Lourdes has now won five its last six season openers dating back to 2018, with the 2021 opening loss to Truett McConnell as the lone setback in the stretch.  Lourdes is 3-4 in season openers when playing a true road game.

Top Returning Offensive Threats: Joel Suraganan led Lourdes offensively last season batting .395 with four home runs and 38 runs batted in.  He had 18 extra base hits and slugged .586 on the year.  Caleb Edwards-Dugan posted a .324 batting average for the Gray Wolves last year. 

On the Mound: Wyatt Smith posted a 5-2 record with a 4.89 earned run average last season, logging a team-leading 57.0 innings of work.  He had 50 strikeouts and limited foes to a .266 average.  Brenden Holland logged 36.2 innings with an 0-2 record and a 6.87 ERA while striking out 26.  Austin Ford went 3-1 out of the bullpen with a save, posting a 7.41 ERA.

Solid Defensively: Nick DiGennaro did not commit an error last season in 40 chances in the field.  Andrew Arntson had just one miscue for a .989 fielding percentage while Caleb Edwards-Dugan had two errors in 125 chances and a .984 fielding percentage.

Streaking: Joel Suraganan enters the season with a six-game hitting streak from the end of last season.  He has also reached base safely in his last nine contests.  Nick DiGennaro hit safely in his final two games of 2023 and is the only other Gray Wolf to enter the season with an active streak of at least two games.  

This and That: Lourdes enters the season 185-323-1 all-time through the first 12 seasons of intercollegiate baseball ... the Gray Wolves are 66-170-1 in true road games ... Lourdes is 21-16 all-time in extra inning affairs after going 4-2 last season ... the Gray Wolves play their first 13 games away from home before a 10-game homestand begins in mid-March.