Little Rock Welcomes SIUE for OVC Weekend Series

GAMES 35-37 | SIUE
Dates/Times	Friday, Apr. 21 - 6 p.m. Saturday, Apr. 22 - 4 p.m. Sunday, Apr. 23 - 1 p.m.
Location	Little Rock, Ark.
Field	Gary Hogan Field
Records	Little Rock (20-14, 7-5 OVC) SIUE (22-14, 5-4 OVC)
Watch	Friday | Saturday | Sunday
Live Stats	StatBroadcast Friday | Saturday | Sunday
Twitter	@LittleRockBSB
Series	Little Rock leads, 8-1

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – After a midweek win over former Sun Belt foe ULM, the Trojans will stick around the capital city for a weekend conference series against the SIUE Cougars. The first pitch of game one in the series will be Friday at 6 p.m. with all games being played at Gary Hogan Field.
 
Last Time Out
The Trojans got back on track on Wednesday against ULM after dropping both games of a doubleheader last Saturday at Eastern Illinois. Little Rock came out on top 10-4 on Wednesday with seven runs in the first three innings being the driving factor behind the win. The team collected 18 hits with every starter collecting at least one hit, five having multi-hit games, and four slugging three hits each. Ty Rhoades led the way for the offense by going 3-for-4 with a double and his third homerun of the season. The freshman from Jonesboro also scored three times along with driving in three RBI. Sophomore Alex Seguine also drove in three runs in a 2-for-3 game, also walking twice. It was a group effort on the bump as six different Trojan pitchers got the opportunity to throw. Austin Stubber would wind up with the win after pitching three scoreless innings of relief, striking out two and allowing just one hit and no walks. The win improved the Trojans record to 20-14 overall as they will now return to OVC play this weekend.
 
Scouting the Cougars
SIUE enters the weekend with an overall record of 22-14 and an OVC record of 5-4 and are currently on a two game win streak, beating Western Illinois and Blackburn College in this week's midweek games. The last time that the Cougars played an OVC series was April 6-8 when they received a visit from Eastern Illinois, winning all three games in Edwardsville, Illinois. Common non-conference opponents between the Cougars and Trojans this season include Bradley and ULM as SIUE is 2-2 against these programs where Little Rock is 3-1. The Trojans (7-5) currently sit just above the Cougars (5-4) in the OVC standings, making this a big series in both the standings and potential seeding for the conference tournament down the line. SIUE sits near the middle of the OVC in both offensive and pitching statistics with a team batting average of .271 on the season to go along with a 5.98 team ERA. Junior first baseman Brennan Orf is the clear leader on the Cougars squad in terms of offensive production. So far this season he is batting .339 with 93 total bases and a team leading 12 homeruns. Prior to the season he was selected to the preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference team after being named to the second team for his efforts in the 2022 season. On the bump, junior Tyler DeLong leads the way with a 2.66 ER over 47.1 innings pitched. The Harrah, Oklahoma native has made 14 appearances with four starts and has struck out 57 batters while allowing opponents to hit just .163 and also having a WHIP under one.
 
Series History
Little Rock and SIUE have met just nine times in their program histories with all games being played between 2010 and 2015. The Trojans hold an 8-1 advantage in the all-time series with all games being played at Gary Hogan Field and also in the month of February as many northern teams flock south for the early months of the season. The last time the two teams met on the diamond was on February 28, 2015, in a doubleheader that saw the Trojans complete back to back shutouts enroute to two victories. Over the last five matchups, SIUE has managed just two runs off of Little Rock pitching and has been shut out on three separate occasions.
 
Three Things to Know

• Sophomore Jackson Wells currently sits atop all of Division I baseball in individual ERA at a mark of 1.27. Last time out, Wells went a season high eight innings without allowing an earned run and opponents are hitting just .219 off the right-hander. He is slated to get the nod in Friday's matchup this weekend.
• Senior Tyler Williams and freshman Ty Rhoades are currently ranked first and second on the team in triples this season with six and three respectively. The pair have shown a knack for finding the gaps and make the most of their speed and hustle as they both have more triples this season than doubles.
• Currently, five regular starters for Little Rock are hitting at or above the .300 mark as we get ready to enter the final third of the 2023 season. As a team the Trojans are hitting an impressive .292 through 34 games, leading the conference in all games by 19 points.

Projected Starters
The expected pitching rotation for this weekend's series is as follows:
 
Friday, April 22: RHP Jackson Wells (LR) vs. RHP Tyler DeLong (SIUE)
Saturday, April 23: RHP Noah Burkey (LR) vs. RHP Jake Bockenstedt (SIUE)
Sunday, April 24: TBA (LR) vs. TBA (SIUE)

For the latest information on Little Rock Baseball, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockBSB on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
 
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