Little Rock Begins Road Trip at Oral Roberts Tuesday

GAME 14 | ORAL ROBERTS
Date	Tuesday, March 3
Time	6 p.m.
Location	Tulsa, Okla.
Field	J.L. Johnson Stadium
Records	Little Rock (8-5, 0-0 SBC) Oral Roberts (4-7, 0-0 Summit)
Watch	ORUAthletics.com
Live Stats	PrestoSports

Opening Pitch
Little Rock begins a four-game road week Tuesday when it heads to Tulsa, Oklahoma, for a midweek game against Oral Roberts. First pitch against the Golden Eagles is scheduled for 6 p.m. at J.L. Johnson Stadium.
 
Trojans Take Series vs. Lions
After dropping the first game of the series against North Alabama Friday, Little Rock responded to win Saturday and Sunday to take the series, the third series victory of the year for the Trojans. Errors cost Little Rock in an 8-4 loss in the opener, but the bats came alive Saturday in a 7-3 win. Aaron Funk then took matters into his own hands, striking out 17 to pace Little Rock to the 2-1 series clincher Sunday.
 
We Got The Funk
Aaron Funk's performance against North Alabama Sunday was one for the record books. His 17 strikeouts in the complete game win is a new Little Rock program record, besting the previous high of 14 set by Scott Madden vs. ULM in 1983, Brad Cherry vs. Western Illinois 2003 and David Klumpp vs. Houston Baptist in 2008. The 17 strikeouts is tied for the single game record in the Sun Belt Conference and is the most by any pitcher in the NCAA in 2020.
 
Scouting the Golden Eagles
Oral Roberts is 4-7 on the season, coming off a series loss to Incarnate Word at Johnson Stadium. The Golden Eagles did notch a series victory over Baylor in Waco, taking two of three from the Bears. As a team, ORU is batting .230, led by Ryan Cash's .295 average, with Adam Oviedo leading the team with 11 RBI. On the mound, the Golden Eagles have a 4.73 ERA with opponents batting .257 against them.
 
Series History
Tuesday's game is the 23rd all-time meeting between the Trojans and Golden Eagles with Oral Roberts holding the 17-5 lead in the series. The two teams split the series in 2019 with a pair of dramatic games as the home team each won a 10th-inning walkoff. The Trojans have struggled in Tulsa, going just 2-12 at J.L. Johnson Stadium, and are 3-5 against the Golden Eagles in Little Rock.
 
Five Things To Know:
 
1. Little Rock enters the week ranked fourth in the Sun Belt Conference in team batting at .272. The Trojans are third in the league in hits (115) and total bases (159) while leading the Sun Belt in at bats (423).
 
2. Kale Emshoff had another solid week for the Trojans at the plate, going 7-for-14 in the last five games for a .500 average with two more home runs, a pair of doubles, three RBI and five runs score. With his 15 total bases and five walks, he boasts a 1.071 slugging percentage and a .632 on base percentage and has at least one hit in seven-straight games, the longest active streak on the team.
 
3. Little Rock leads the Sun Belt Conference in strikeouts with 136, averaging 10.5 Ks per game. Aaron Funk ranks third in the league with 28 as he is the league leader in innings pitched at 22.1.
 
4. The Trojan have won each of its first three weekend series for the first time since the 2013 season. Little Rock took two of three from Illinois State to open the season, followed by a two-game sweep of Nicholls and a 2-1 series win over North Alabama.
 
5. The Trojans are 2-2 in true road games this season and 1-1 in neutral site games, sitting at 3-3 in games played away from Gary Hogan Field. Little Rock plays four-straight away from Little Rock this week before eight of the next 11 at home.
 
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