Trojans Travel to Jonesboro for In-State Midweek Matchup

GAMES 45 | Arkansas State
Dates/Times	Tuesday, May 9 - 6 p.m.
Location	Jonesboro, Ark.
Field	Tomlinson Stadium
Records	Little Rock (27-17, 12-5 OVC) ASU (16-28, 6-16 SBC)
Watch	Tuesday
Live Stats	StatBroadcast Tuesday
Twitter	@LittleRockBSB
Series	ASU leads, 83-48

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Following a weekend that saw the Trojans beat Southern Indiana twice in two games, Little Rock will now travel up to Arkansas State for a midweek matchup against the Red Wolves. First pitch will be at 6 p.m. at Tomlinson Stadium.
 
Last Time Out
The Trojans made a return to OVC play this past weekend with a trip up to Evansville, Indiana for a weekend set against the Screaming Eagles of Southern Indiana. The weekend was cut short due to thunderstorms and excessive rain as Sunday's game was called after two innings and canceled before a result could be recorded. Little Rock made the most of the two games played however, taking both the Friday and Saturday games by scores of 4-3 and 14-10. The Trojans trailed for almost all of the first game, finally being able to take the lead in the top of the ninth with two outs as Nico Baumbach sent a single up the middle that scored two runs and gave the Trojans a 4-3 advantage. The drama continued in the bottom of the frame when USI got runners to first and third with one out. Fortunately, a strikeout and fly ball to center followed to secure the win for the Trojans. Saturday was a back and forth affair that saw five lead changes in the first 3.5 innings. Little Rock was able to grab the lead for good with a four run top of the fourth and Jacob Weatherley took it the rest of the way, retiring 17 USI hitters in a row and 20 of the last 22 to secure the win and the series.
 
Scouting the Red Wolves
Arkansas State currently holds an overall record of 16-28 and is on a one game winning streak. Last week the Red Wolves dropped a 13-4 decision to Memphis before losing to Old Dominion in two out of three games at home. ASU currently has a record of 6-16 in the Sun Belt and is in 12^th place in conference play. The Red Wolves are hitting .269 as a team this season and have two qualified hitters batting above .300. Brandon Hager is leading the way for the offense as the junior from Festus, Missouri is batting .333 with an OPS of 1.089. He has clubbed 12 homeruns for the Red Wolves and leads the team in total bases with 98. On the mound A-State has a team ERA of 7.16 and is allowing opposing hitters to bat at a .293 clip on the year. The pitching staff has been susceptible to the long ball this season, allowing 64 homeruns through 44 games. Junior righthanded pitcher Arlon Butts has been solid out of the bullpen in 20 appearances, pitching to an ERA of 4.35 and has struck out 39 in 39.1 innings pitched.
 
Series History
Arkansas State is leading the all-time series against the Trojans with a record of 83-48 with games dating all the way back to 1975. The series has been marked with long winning streaks for each side and Arkansas State is currently on one of those streaks having not lost to Little Rock since 2019 and have been winners of five straight matchups. Tuesday will be the first time in a long time that the two sides have met as non-conference opponents with Little Rock leaving the Sun Belt to join the OVC and being in its first season in the new conference.
 
Three Things to Know

• With two wins and a Morehead State loss on the weekend, the Trojans are now in sole possession of second place in the OVC and control their own destiny for a multi-round bye in the conference tournament if they were to finish in the same position or higher after the last two weekends of conference play.
• Luke Pectol continues to swing a hot bat and is now on a multi-hit game streak of four to go along with a 12 game hitting streak. The Little Rock native has raised his batting average 24 points over the past week moving from a .318 average to .342.
• Friday's win marked number 200 for head coach Chris Curry in his tenure at Little Rock, with Saturday making 201. He joins Gary Hogan (274 wins from 1986-96) and Jack Fulmer (202 wins from 1975-85) as the only head coaches to reach the milestone in their time at Little Rock

Senior Erik McKnight will make the start tomorrow against the Red Wolves and he will be facing off against Jakob Frederick.
 
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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