LAST TIME OUT
- WKU used dominant pitching to capture a three-game series sweep of Hartford over the weekend.
- The Hilltoppers earned an 11-2 victory in the series opener, with starting pitcher Jake Kates striking out eight batters in 8.0 innings of work.
- WKU won game two, 11-0, highlighted by Sean Bergeron's career-high 16 strikeouts and complete game shutout.
- The Hilltoppers came away with a 3-2 win in the finale, with the pitching trio of Devyn Terbrak, Cooper Hellman and Mason Vinyard combining to allow just six hits while striking out nine.
FRESHMAN ON FIRE
- True freshman Ty Batusich was named the Conference USA Hitter of the Week on Monday after slashing .471/.500/.706 in four starts while racking up eight hits – including a double and home run – to go along with two runs and 10 RBI against (RV) Kentucky and Hartford.
- Batusich currently leads the team in home runs (five), RBI (19), total bases (34), on-base percentage (.511) and slugging percentage (.872) while ranking second in batting average (.410) and runs (10).
- Nationally, Batusich currently ranks 14th in the country in RBI, 18th in home runs and 31st in slugging percentage.
CAREER DAY ON THE DIAMOND
- In game two of the Hilltoppers' series against Hartford, Sean Bergeron struck out a career-high 16 batters while surrendering just three hits and not allowing a walk in a complete-game shutout performance.
- Bergeron's outing marked the first nine-inning complete game shutout by a WKU pitcher since March 25, 2018, when Paul Kirkpatrick accomplished the same feat in a 4-0 win against Rice.
- The senior's 16 strikeouts were also the most by a Hilltopper since at least 2005 – as far back as WKU game records go – topping the previous mark of 14 by Ryan Thurston.
- Following his career day, Bergeron was recognized by various national outlets, earning Pitcher of the Day honors by D1Baseball while being named a Performance of the Week finalist by Golden Spikes and National Players of the Week honoree by Collegiate Baseball.
CLOSING TIME
- Relief pitcher Mason Vinyard has been a dominant presence on the mound in the early part of the season.
- In five appearances, Vinyard has compiled a 2-0 record with two saves and a 1.04 ERA while allowing just seven hits and one run to go along with 16 strikeouts in 8.2 innings of action.
- Dating back to the end of the 2021 season, Vinyard has struck out 36 batters in his last 20.0 innings of work.
FIRST AIN'T FREE
- The Hilltopper pitching staff currently ranks 10th in the nation with just 2.56 walks allowed per nine innings.
- WKU also ranks 16th in the country with a 3.96 strikeout-to-walk ratio, compiling 107 strikeouts compared to just 27 walks.
- Individually, Sean Bergeron ranks 15th in the nation with a ridiculous 24.0 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 18th with 0.47 walks allowed per nine innings.
SERIES HISTORY
- WKU and Eastern Kentucky have met 141 times in program history, with the Hilltoppers owning a 77-62-2 all-time series edge.
- The teams last met on May 18, 2021, with WKU winning 4-3 on a walk-off RBI single by Matthew Meyer in the 14th inning.
- The Hilltoppers have won their past three meetings with the Colonels.
SCOUTING THE HILLTOPPERS
- WKU is 7-4 on the season following its series sweep of Hartford over the weekend.
- Offensively, four Hilltoppers are hitting over .300 in Tristin Garcia (.425), Ty Batusich (.410), Aidan Gilroy (.391) and Andrew Delaney (.304).
- On the mound, WKU has compiled a 3.60 team ERA – good for third in C-USA – while striking out 107 batters in 95.0 innings of action.
SCOUTING THE COLONELS
- Eastern Kentucky is 7-5 on the season following its series sweep of Bowling Green over the weekend.
- At the plate, the Colonels have four players hitting above .300, led by Conner Davis who currently owns a .343 batting average.
- Eastern Kentucky's probable starter for Tuesday's game, Isaac Milburn, owns a 1.17 ERA to go along with three strikeouts in 7.2 innings of work.
