LIVINGSTON, Ala. -- The 20th-ranked
University of West Alabama baseball
team returns to Gulf South
Conference play, as UWA (20-8, 5-0
GSC) hosts Valdosta State in a
three-game weekend series. The
series begins with a doubleheader on
Saturday, March 28, scheduled to
start at 4:00 p.m. The games will be
broadcasted on WZNJ 106.5-FM and at
athletics.uwa.edu.
The Tigers, who are on a nine-game
win streak, enter the weekend after
improving to 5-0 in the GSC last
weekend with a sweep of in-state foe
Montevallo. Sunday’s 15-8 sweep
clincher marked the 300th
win for UWA skipper Gary Rundles in
Livingston. Rundles boasts a 300-174
record since his arrival in 2001.
The Red and White outscored the
Falcons 36-11 during the weekend
span.
VSU (25-10, 2-1 GSC) is riding a
two-game win streak entering the
weekend. The Blazers defeated UAH
19-9 last Sunday for a 2-1 series
win and then turned back Albany
State 5-1 during the mid-week. Matt
Costello leads the VSU offensive
attack, batting .526 for the season.
The two-time GSC Player of the Week
is the team-leader with 51 hits and
41 RBI for the year. Costello has
also posted a 5-0 record on the hill
with a 4.41 ERA in a team-best 49
innings. Brandon Graves also
possesses a spotless 5-0 mark from
the mound, while leading the Blazers
with 47 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings
and a 1.98 ERA.
Nick Wheeler leads UWA with 46 hits
and 34 RBI on the year, while
touting a .418 batting average.
Wheeler, a Hokes Bluff, native, is
second on the team in homeruns with
seven. Rob Dahlberg (Gilbertown,
Ala.) holds the best batting average
on the team with a .420 batting clip
and a team-best 16 stolen bases.
Mike Schmitt and Matt Hill are the
catalyst on the bump for the Tigers.
Schmitt, a Cheyenne, Wyo.-product,
has pitched a team-leading 46 2/3
innings while compiling a 6-1 record
with a 2.89 ERA. Hill holds a 5-2
record on the mound with a 3.80 ERA.
The D’Iberville, Miss.-native has
fanned a team-leading 37 opposing
batters this season.
The series concludes on Sunday,
March 29 with a single, nine-inning
game. First pitch is scheduled for
2:00 p.m. The game Sunday can be
heard via the internet by clicking
the UWA Baseball logo at
www.MyWin98.com.
