Hilltoppers Conclude Five-Game Road Swing at Evansville

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – WKU Baseball concludes a five-game road swing with a midweek matchup at Evansville on Tuesday, March 25. First pitch from Charles H. Braun Stadium is set for 6 p.m. CT.

GAME INFO
• WKU (21-3) at Evansville (7-16)
• Charles H. Braun Stadium | Evansville, Ind.
• Tuesday, March 25 | 6 p.m. CT
• Listen: The Varsity Network (PxP: Jeff Younglove)
• Social: @WKU_Baseball | @WKUSports
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast
• Game Notes: WKU | Evansville | CUSA

ABOUT THE TOPS
• The Hilltoppers enter the game with a 21-3 (1-2 CUSA) record after dropping two-of-three at Kennesaw State last weekend.
• 18 of WKU's 21 wins have come at Nick Denes Field. This is the first time the Hilltoppers have started 18-0 at home in program history.
• After playing 18 of their first 21 games at home – and winning 20 of their first 21 games – to start the season, the Hilltoppers went on the road to start CUSA play at Kennesaw State looking to extend their 15-game winning streak, the second-longest in program history. WKU was stunned as the Owls took game one in comeback fashion before taking the series finale after the Hilltoppers responded with a win in game two to set up the game three rubber match. This marked the first series loss of the season and the first loss on the weekend for WKU as they came into the series with five-consecutive nonconference series sweeps.
• The WKU pitching staff has been dominant thus far as their 2.79 ERA is the second-best in the nation only trailing Tennessee. The Hilltoppers are one of four teams in the nation with a sub-3.00 ERA.
• Weekend rotation pitcher, Jack Bennett, has been special for WKU through five starts. He's recorded 26 strikeouts in 25.2 innings with a 1.05 ERA. He is ranked eighth nationally in ERA.
• Drew Whalen, another rotation starter, improved to 5-0 in six starts this weekend as he shut out Kennesaw State in 5.2 innings of work. He tallied six strikeouts while only giving up three hits. His five wins are tied for the most in CUSA.
• On the offensive end, the Tops' .326 batting average and 65 doubles lead CUSA. Nationally, WKU ranks 11th in batting average and third in doubles.
• Hilltopper outfielder Ryan Wideman's .465 batting average, 1.345 OPS, 47 hits, 32 RBI, 11 doubles, four triples, 84 total bases, .832 slugging percentage and 19 stolen bases lead CUSA. The Marietta, Ga. native is top five in CUSA in batting average (.465), OPS (1.345), runs (31), hits (47), doubles (11), triples (4), RBI (32), total bases (84), slugging percentage (.832), on-base percentage (.513) and stolen bases (19). The junior was awarded CUSA Hitter of the Week on March 17 after an 11-for-21 (.524) week with 11 RBI, a grand slam, five doubles, two triples, six runs and two stolen bases. He hit for the program's first recorded cycle against SIU.

SERIES INFORMATION
• This weekend will be the 77th meeting between WKU and Evansville.
• The Hilltoppers lead the all-time series 40-34-2 dating back to the first meeting in 1926.
• However, the Purple Aces have had the advantage as of late, winning three of the last five meetings.

SCOUTING THE PURPLE ACES
• Evansville is coming off a series win over Murray State last weekend in their first MVC action of the season.
• As a team, the Purple Aces own a .266 batting average while scoring 5.9 runs per game.
• On the mound, Evansville has a 6.72 ERA with 166 strikeouts in 187.1 innings.

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 X and @WKUBaseball on Instagram.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jack Bennett

Drew Whalen

Ryan Wideman