Hilltoppers Host New Mexico State to Close 2024 Regular Season

Thursday, May 16

Bowling Green, Ky.

3:00 PM CT

Western Kentucky University

New Mexico State

Photo by: Steve Roberts, WKU Athletics

Hilltoppers Host New Mexico State to Close 2024 Regular Season

5/15/2024 4:34:00 PM | Baseball

WKU x New Mexico State Game Notes

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Baseball concludes Conference USA regular season play as they host New Mexico State for a three-game series.

SCHEDULE
• Due to inclement weather on Friday, there will now be a doubleheader on Thursday beginning at 3 p.m. CT with game two starting 30 minutes following the conclusion of game one.
• Saturday's series finale remains as scheduled with a first pitch of 1 p.m. CT.

LAST TIME OUT
• Prior to last weekend's series loss at Louisiana Tech, WKU defeated Bellarmine 14-2 in seven innings last Tuesday at Nick Denes Field.
• Four Hilltoppers had multi-hit and multi-RBI outings with junior Eli Burwash collecting, a career-high, four hits while junior Brady Browning launched a three-run home run in the win.
• WKU utilized a new arm every inning to only allowed two runs on five hits.

SENIOR DAY
• WKU plans to recognize eight seniors prior to Saturday's season finale against New Mexico State.
• That group includes Jacob Bimbi, Cory Bosecker, Mason Burns, Lane Diuguid, Cristian Garcia, Coby Moe, Jaylin Rae, and Tyler Rardin.

GARNERING NATIONAL ATTENTION
• For the first time since the 2020 season, WKU cracked the top 100 RPI rankings and has been ranked as high as No. 82.
• This is the Hilltoppers highest RPI ranking since 2010 when they were as high as No. 38.
• So far in 2024, WKU has seven wins against top 100 RPI teams.
• The Tops have series wins over No. 25 Dallas Baptist and Sam Houston, a series split with No. 22 West Virginia, and a midweek win over Louisville.

BURNS CHASING WKU SINGLE-SEASON SAVE RECORD
• With three games remaining in the 2024 regular season, senior Mason Burns leads the nation in saves with 14.
• Burns' 14 saves are tied for the most in WKU single-season history.
• The Bloomington, Ill. native is just the third WKU pitcher to reach the double-digit mark in a single season, joining Ian Tompkins (14) in 2014 and Matt Wilhite (11) in 2003.
• For his career, Burns is tied for the second-most saves in program history with 18 and only trails Wilhite (23) in the category.

RARDIN IN CUSA PLAY
• After dropping the first four Conference USA series in the 2023 season, head coach Marc Rardin and the Tops have won 10 of 13 three-game sets in league play that include five consecutive CUSA series wins in 2023 with series sweeps over Florida Atlantic, 2023 CUSA Tournament Champion, Charlotte, and Rice.
• In 2024, the Hilltoppers own a 13-8 mark in league play and claimed five straight series wins over Jax State, No. 8 Dallas Baptist, Sam Houston, Liberty, and Middle Tennessee.

RARDIN APPROACHING 1K
• WKU Baseball head coach Marc Rardin is just one win away from 1,000 career victories as a head coach.
• Prior to coming to The Hill in 2023, The Tops' skipper spent 20 seasons as the head coach for Iowa Western Community College where he racked up 934 career wins.
• In two seasons at the helm of WKU, Rardin owns the second-highest winning percentage of any previous WKU head coach, winning 65 of 110 games (.590).
• He has led the Tops to back-to-back 30-win seasons for the first time since 2010-11 as well as five consecutive Conference USA series wins each year, which had never been done before.

THE SACRIFICE PLAY
• WKU leads the nation in sacrifice bunts with 68 on the season thus far.
• In two years with Marc Rardin at the helm, WKU ranks second in the country with 124 sacrifice bunts, only trailing Wofford that has tallied 126 since the beginning of the 2023 season.
• Nationally, junior Zayd Brannigan is tied for fourth with 13 while senior Jaylin Rae is tied for 10th with 12 and junior Joey Baran is tied for 42nd with eight.

SERIES HISTORY
• WKU and New Mexico State have faced off 17 times prior to this weekend with the Aggies owning a 12-5 all-time series lead.
• It has been almost 20 years since the teams last met as they had played three times every year from 2001-05.
• The Hilltoppers claimed the first four victories of the series while the Aggies have won the last four.

SCOUTING THE HILLTOPPERS
• WKU is 32-19 (13-9 CUSA) after dropping a series to Louisiana Tech last weekend.
• The Hilltoppers have two players hitting over .300, led by junior Blake Cavill (.313) with junior Ethan Lizama (.302) not far behind.
• On the mound, WKU holds a 5.07 team ERA with 429 strikeouts in 433.1 innings.

SCOUTING THE AGGIES
• New Mexico State is 24-25 (9-12 CUSA) after splitting two games with TCU last weekend.
• The Aggies are led by Keith Jones II at the plate, hitting .387.
• The New Mexico State pitching staff has produced an 8.51 team ERA and has recorded 370 strikeouts in 412.1 frames.

How to follow WKU Baseball: For complete information on WKU Hilltopper Baseball, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program via social media @WKU_Baseball on Twitter and @WKUBaseball on Instagram.