BOWLING GREEN, Ky. As we arrive at the midway point of the 2009 baseball season, the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers have been as advertised. The Toppers (21-9, 9-3 SBC), with the return of eight of nine starting position players from last year's Sun Belt Tournament Championship team, are in the top 10 in seven different offensive categories as well as ranking eighth in the nation in defense (based on fielding percentage).
Averaging nearly 10 runs per game, WKU is fourth in Division I in runs (298) and in RBI (277). In addition, the Hilltoppers are fifth in slugging percentage (.568), sixth in on-base percentage (.445), seventh in hits (361), seventh in total bases (598), and 10th in walks (158).
Leading the Sun Belt Conference in both hitting (.343) and fielding (.978), WKU is also tops among league teams in RPI, ranking 38th.
After a road game at SEC foe Kentucky on Wednesday, WKU returns home to Nick Denes Field to host New Orleans in a key three-game conference series. The first-place Hilltoppers are 17-1 at the friendly confines and carry a 12-game winning streak into Friday night's game. WKU has won its last nine weekend series dating back to last season.
