GAME NOTES (PDF)
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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Looking to get back on track leading into the Conference USA portion of the 2019 schedule, WKU Baseball will face a road test at Kentucky on Wednesday, March 13, with first pitch at 3 p.m. CT at Kentucky Proud Park. It will be the 1000th career game as a head coach for John Pawlowski, who boasts an overall career record of 572-426-1 in his time at College of Charleston, Auburn and WKU.
WKU fans can follow along on the SEC Network + live stream and listen to the broadcast on the Hilltopper-IMGÂ Sports Network.
SERIES HISTORY
- The Hilltoppers and Wildcats have met 63 times on the diamond, with Kentucky holding a 35-28 advantage in the all-time series. The Wildcats boast a 22-15 record in home games.
- WKU and Kentucky first met in 1967, with the Hilltoppers winning by a score of 9-7 in Lexington. Since 1995, the programs have played at least once every season except for 2005.
- WKU will need a win to avoid its first four-game losing streak against the Wildcats since a seven-game skid from 1992-95. Kentucky has edged the Hilltoppers in back-to-back meetings, ending in 4-3 defeats. Recaps: Feb. 27, 2018 (L, 3-4) | March 21, 2017 (L, 3-4)
- WKU and Kentucky will play again in 2019 when the Wildcats come to Bowling Green Ballpark on April 23. It will be the six-year anniversary of the longest game in Hilltopper history, when WKU defeated Kentucky by a score of 3-2 in 18 innings. Outfielder Trevor Lowe hit a walk-off homerun to win the contest.
WKU PREVIEW
- WKU vs. Memphis recaps: THURSDAY (L, 6-9) | FRIDAY (L, 4-12)Â | SUNDAY (L, 4-10)
- Right fielder Jake Sanford has been a power threat for the Hilltoppers. The Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, native ranks 59th in Division I with four homeruns, 55th with a .722 slugging percentage, 54th with 39 total bases and 25th with seven doubles. His 12 extra-base hits (seven doubles, one triple and four homeruns) are tied for second among Conference USA hitters. With a homerun in his fourth-straight game on Friday, Sanford became the first WKU hitter to accomplish the feat since catcher Jordan Newton from April 18-23, 2006. He failed to hit a homerun for a fifth-straight game on Sunday, but went 4-for-5 with two doubles to post the first four-hit day of 2019 by a Hilltopper.
- First baseman Davis Sims has been just as productive, boasting a team-best 10-game hit streak going into Wednesday's matchup. For the season, his .333/.373/.519 slash line is catching up to his .333/.403/.552 mark over the past two seasons at Murray State. In 128 career games, the Paducah native has 100 runs scored, 111 driven in, 19 homeruns and 50 doubles — which rank tied for sixth among active Division I hitters.
- Designated hitter Dillon Nelson also had a productive series at the dish vs. Memphis, going 7-for-13 with three doubles, one homerun, three runs scored and six batted in. The Omaha, Neb., native pushed his season slash line from .229/.289/.257 to .313/.353/.458 in only three games. Along with Sanford (14), infielder Jack Wilson (10), catcher Matt Phipps (nine) and Sims (9), Nelson's 11 runs batted in gives the Hilltoppers five players with nine or more on the year.
- Speaking of Wilson, the Elizabethtown native leads qualified WKU hitters with a .386 batting average and .481 on-base percentage. He reached base in 8-of-12 plate appearances against the Tigers, going 6-for-10 with the bat plus one walk and one time hit by pitch.
KENTUCKY PREVIEW
- Kentucky vs. Middle Tennessee recaps: FRIDAY (W, 4-1) | SUNDAY (W, 7-0Â & W, 5-4)
- The Wildcats enter the week with an 11-4 overall record after sweeping the Blue Raiders over the weekend. Kentucky also plays on Tuesday afternoon, hosting SIU Edwardsville for a midweek contest.
- Coming into the week, the Wildcats were led by left fielder Ryan Shinn and designated hitter T.J. Collett, who typically bat second and third in the lineup. Shinn boasts a .347/.484/.694 slash line with a team-high 11 extra-base hits and 15 runs scored. Collett, meanwhile, has hit a team-best four homeruns with 17 runs batted in. With lefty Mason Hazelwood starting against the Cougars on Tuesday, Kentucky will likely start lefty Dillon Marsh or righty Jimmy Ramsey in the Wednesday matchup against the Hilltoppers.
- Newly-constructed Kentucky Proud Park is a $49 million facility that was completed just prior to the 2019 season. The stadium is complete with permanent seating for 2,500 as well as stone terraces, grass berms and a 360-degree concourse that will bring its regular-season capacity to approximately 5,000. The Wildcats boast an 8-1 record at home this season, the only loss coming to Boston College on Wednesday, March 6 by a score of 12-4 when the Eagles scored 11 runs in the final two innings to claim victory.
