WKU Game Notes (PDF)
Game 9 Info: Video | Audio | Stats
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — After winning 4-of-5 games in the opening homestand at Nick Denes Field, WKU Baseball travels to Lexington to take on No. 7 Kentucky in a Tuesday matchup at Cliff Hagan Stadium. First pitch between the Hilltoppers and Wildcats is set for 3 p.m. CT and will be available via stream on SEC Network +
By defeating Belmont in the Home Opener and then taking the first three games vs. Northern Illinois, WKU put together its first four-game win streak since April 22-26, 2016, when the Hilltoppers swept UTSA at home and then went on the road to defeat Lipscomb in a midweek contest.
The Huskies salvaged a 5-0 victory in the series finale Sunday to deny WKU a five-game win streak at Nick Denes Field for the first time since a nine-game run Feb. 16-to-March 21, 2014.
Midweek Preview
Kentucky holds a 34-28 all-time series advantage, but WKU has gone 9-4 against Big Blue dating back to 2009. The Wildcats took both games against the Hilltoppers last season, including a 17-2 win at Cliff Hagan Stadium and a 4-3 win in Bowling Green.
On March 1 in Lexington, Kentucky jumped on WKU for 10 runs in the first two innings. Kevin Lambert hit his first career homerun, a solo shot to left field, for the Hilltoppers in the sixth inning.
Three weeks later at Bowling Green Ballpark, the No. 19 Wildcats took a 4-0 lead in the fourth, but WKU kept creeping back in the game. The Hilltoppers put up two runs in the bottom of the fourth, then another in the eighth, but were unable to even it up in a 4-3 loss. Kaleb Duckworth, Thomas Peter and Hunter Wood each had two hits, while the WKU bullpen fired five scoreless innings.
This season, No. 7 Kentucky boasts a 7-1 record through the first two weekends with a plus-45 run differential, winning four games in a weekend in Spartanburg, S.C., and sweeping Oakland in a three-game home series.
The Wildcats' lone loss was in midweek, falling to Xavier on Feb. 20 by a score of 3-2 in 10 innings. Lefty Brad Schaenzer got the starting nod against the Musketeers, allowing two earned runs in five innings, giving up five hits and two walks while striking out four.
Left fielder Luke Heyer and designated hitter T.J. Collett have led the way for the Kentucky offense, combining for nine homeruns and 27 RBI while batting .333 and .344, respectively. They will go up against a Hilltopper pitching staff that has allowed only 25 runs through the first eight games, which ranks second among WKU teams in the past 40 years (24 runs allowed in 1981).
In the first midweek game of the season Feb. 20, head coach John Pawlowski used nine pitchers in a 4-1 victory over Belmont. Lefty Evan Acosta got the start and allowed one run in the first inning, then the subsequent eight relievers combined for eight scoreless. Each WKU pitcher got 2-to-4 out, while none faced more than five batters in his appearance.
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