DALLAS BAPTIST @ UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS
March 18 | Austin, Texas | UFCU Disch-Falk Field
 
MULTIMEDIA COVERAGE
Video/Audio: Patriot Broadcasting Network
Livestats: UT Livestats
Facebook: DBU Athletics
 
SERIES INFORMATION
Dates: March 18, 2014
Time: 6:00 PM
Stadium: UFCU Disch-Falk Field (6,649)
Broadcast: Patriot Broadcasting Network
Talent: Reagan Ratcliff & Brendan Smith
 
PROBABLE STARTERS
 
Tuesday, March 18
 
DBU – Cody Beam (1st Start)
vs.
Texas - Lukas Schiraldi (2-1, 4.00 ERA, 18 IP, 10 BB, 7 K)
 
THE LEAD – The Dallas Baptist Baseball Team eclipsed its best start in program history since joining the NCAA Division I ranks with a victory this past Friday. DBU now owns a  six-game winning streak following three consecutive shutout wins at Missouri State this past weekend.  The current streaks is the longest since the Patriots (15-4) won a stretch of six games last year from March 8-15.  The last time the Patriots won seven in a row came March 9-17, 2012.  DBU's 15-4 overall record ties the 2001 club's start through the first 19 games.
 
The Patriots look to keep the momentum going on Tuesday, when they wrap-up the road trip with a mid-week contest at No. 19 University of Texas (15-6). First pitch is slated for 6 PM.
 
MOST RECENT ACTION – DBU pitched a trio of shutouts and received timely hitting to claim its third sweep of the season, and first on the road away from Horner Ballpark. All three match-ups were decided by two runs or less, and were decided in the Patriots' final at bat.
 
Opening the series was the team-leader in ERA amongst starters, junior, Paul Voelker. The right-hander pitched a career-high eight shutout innings, and at one point, retired 11 straight hitters from MSU. Voelker also fanned eight in the phenomenal outing.
 
The Patriots were also stifled at the plate most of the afternoon by MSU's starter, Cody Schumacher. In the ninth, redshirt sophomore, Trevin Sonnier, punched a two-out RBI single up the middle to score the evenutal winning run in Daniel Salters, from second base.  
 
Sophomore, Brandon Koch, extended his scoreless streak to 11 consecutive scoreless innings with an interesting bottom of the ninth. After recording the first two outs, the native of Plano, Texas, walked the next pair of batters from the Bears, but induced a groundout to seal the win.
 
With inclement weather in the forecast for Sunday, the two squads met on the diamond for a doubleheader on Saturday.
 
Following to Voelker's masterful performance, junior, Cy Sneed, would be just as effective tossing eight shutout innings of his own. The righty would scatter five hits and fan seven in his best start of the year.
 
Senior, Mike Wesolowski, helped produce the winning run for DBU, after pushing a bunt down the third base line that would be thrown away by MSU starting pitcher, Jon Harris. The errant throw allowed Friday's hero, Sonnier, to race around and cross the plate for the Patriot's first run.
 
A second run would be tacked on later in the frame by redshirt sophomore, Justin Wall, who beat out an infield grounder, allowing Wesolowski to score from third. Sophomore, Joseph Shaw, pitched a flawless ninth, striking out the final hitter to give DBU back-to-back shutouts.
 
Game two would cap off a sweep with another quality outing from a DBU starter. Sophomore, Cory Taylor, delivered seven scoreless frames and struck out a career-high 11 batters.
 
For the third staight game, the Patriots would strike again in the ninth.  This time, sophomore, Austin Listi, powered a towering blast down the left field, giving DBU a 1-0 edge.  The round-tripper was Listi's team-leading fifth homerun of the year.  A double-play ball and strikeout by Koch in the bottom of the ninth were all the Patriots needed to escape with the series sweep.
 
HOT AT THE PLATE – Wesolowski remains the top batter on the squad, carrying a team-best .329 batting average with 23 hits in 62 total at bats. The first baseman only had one hit this past weekend, but was instrumental in the squad's second-game triumph to claim the series.
 
The senior also crossed the plate three times in the rubber game victory last Saturday versus Oral Roberts. Wesolowski has reached base safely in 17 of 19 games he's started on the campaign, also totaling 11 RBI, 6 doubles, a homer, and six walks.
 
Listi is tied for third on the club with 19 hits, and lead the squad with five home runs. The homer on Saturday for the Mesa, Arizona, native was the game-winner in the final contest of a sweep this weekend, and his first since the 15-inning marathon at TCU. Three of the outfielder's long balls have occurred away from Horner Ballpark.
 
Sonnier has quietly built a five-game hitting streak dating back to last weekend when the shortstop drove in three runs against Oral Roberts in the 10-5 finale. The native of Nederland, Texas, has tallied seven of his 17 total hits during that span. In the six game-hit streak, Sonnier is hitting .333.  Along with his game-winning RBI in the game one at Missouri State, he scored the game-winner in the second game, after leading off the inning with a ground-rule double.
 
Freshman, David Martinelli, extended his hitting streak to four-straight with a two-for-four day on Friday. The rookie has combined for nine hits over that stretch, but did snap the streak on Saturday.  Like Sonnier, Martinelli is hitting .333 over the last six games.  The native of Waxahachie, Texas, has compiled a .286 batting average for third on the team. He also has driven in at least one run in the past four match-ups at Horner Ballpark, with two coming in a 19-2 decision last Saturday.
 
LIGHTS OUT – The Patriots have established a tough pitching presence in the early part of the year. Through 177.2 innings, DBU hurlers have allowed 64 runs, 49 earned, to compile a 2.48 ERA. The Patriots are on track to shatter the program's best ERA since DBU joined the NCAA Division I ranks.  The top earned run average came in 2004, when they staff posted a 3.28 ERA.  In addition, the Patriots lead the Missouri Valley Conference with 190 punch outs.
 
The pitching this past series recorded a stretch of three-straight shutouts and have now gone 30.1 consecutive innings without allowing a run. Friday's decision was the first time the opposition was blanked since DBU won 19-0 to open the year against Mississippi Valley State.

Cory Taylor was named the Pitcher of the Week in the Missouri Valley Conference.  In two starts, Taylor went 1-0 and allowed just two runs in 13 innings of work.  The right-hander from Owasso, Oklahoma, struck out 20 batters, while walking just one.  In Saturday's series finale versus Missouri State, Taylor tossed seven scoreless innings and struck out a career-high 11 batters.
 
The bullpen continues to work hard logging quality innings, led by the foursome of Brandon Koch, Joseph Shaw, Sean Stutzman, and Josh Urban.
 
Urban has gone a team-best 16.2 innings for the relief corps and boast a staff-low 0.54 ERA. The Austin, Texas, native hasn't allowed a run in the last eight innings. He's fanned 19 opposing hitters to rank second out of the bullpen.
 
Leading the strikeout category out of the pen is the right-handed hurler, Koch. The sophomore has posted 24 strikeouts and continues to deliver in high pressure situations, going eight appearances now without allowing a run. He grabbed his second save of the year on Saturday.
 
Shaw has also been effective in 13.0 innings of work and striking out 15. He leads the squad with three saves, after retiring the side in order in the first game of a double-header on Saturday.

Stutzman is second on the staff wth a 0.71 ERA.  In seven appearances and 12.2 innings, the sophomore transfer from Des Moines Area Community College has allowed just one earned run.
 
SCOUTING THE LONGHORNS – No.19 Texas (15-6) has gone 9-4 at its home venue, but did drop its first series at the friendly confines this weekend against the University of Kansas. A narrow 3-2 setback opened the three-game set Friday, and after another close, 2-1, final on Saturday to even things up; the Longhorns would fall in the rubber game Sunday by a 6-1 decision.  Sunday's finale saw the Jayhawks score five runs in the ninth to break a 1-1 tie
 
Texas is 9-3 in the past 12 games still, and is the second ranked opponent DBU has faced this season. The other match-up was at No. 21 TCU, which resulted in a 15-inning loss, 5-4.

Two players are batting over .300 for the Longhorns, led by Mark Payton with a .417 clip. In 21 games, he has ripped a team-leading 30 hits, four triples, 17 BB, and 12 RBI. The slugger has one of the club's three homers, is tied for second in doubles with three, and has crossed the plate a total of 13 times.
 
Collin Shaw is second on the team with a .344 average, collecting 11 hits and five RBI in 15 games. C.J Hinojosa, Ben Johnson, and Brooks Marlow are second and tied for third, respectively in hits on the team with 19 and 17. Hinojosa and Johnson are tied for second with 10 RBI apiece to round out the trio of double figure run producers.
 
The Longhorn pitching staff has compiled a 2.19 ERA and .224 opposing batting average against. Travis Dukes has not allowed a run in 10 appearances and 8.1 innings tossed on the year.  Texas closer, John Curtiss, has taken the ball out of the bullpen seven times, converting a team-high, four saves. His only run allowed was unearned, resulting in an ERA of 0.00.
 
SERIES HISTORY – The programs did not face each other in 2013, but did meet in 2012 with DBU falling in 12 innings, 2-1, at Austin, Texas. The all-time series favors UT 45-7.
 
In the latest contest that pitted the Patriots against the No. 25 ranked team in the nation at the time, both squads were locked 1-1 through the first nine innigs. In the deciding 12th inning, a blooper began the rally, while an infield single from Tim Maitland would decide the game for the Longhorns.

Current senior, RJ Talamantes, would cross the plate as the lone DBU run in the ballgame. He led off the first inning with a double and moved to third on a fly out. He raced home on a double steal attempt that ended in teammate, Boomer Collins, being caught in a run down.
 
UPCOMING SCHEDULE – Dallas Baptist returns home to Horner Ballpark for a three-game weekend series versus Utah Valley University on March 21-23. Start times for the three-game set begins Friday at 6:30 PM, Saturday at 2 PM, and Sunday at 1 PM. The Patriots will be at Stephen F. Austin State University on March 25 at 6:30 PM, to launch a 4-game road trip.