DALLAS BAPTIST @ Texas Tech University
April 15 | Lubbock, Texas | Rip Griffin Park
 
MULTIMEDIA COVERAGE
DBU Audio: Patriot Broadcasting Network
Livestats: TTU Livestats
Facebook: DBU Athletics
 
SERIES INFORMATION
Dates: April 15, 2014 (Horner Ballpark)                           
Time: 2 PM                                                             
Stadium: Rip Griffin Park (4,638)                                     
Broadcast: Patriot Broadcasting Network
Talent: Reagan Ratcliff and Nate Frieling
 
PROBABLE STARTERS
 
Tuesday, April 15
DBU – RHP Drew Smith (2-2  3.93 ERA  18.1 IP  11 BB  17 K)
vs.
Texas Tech – RHP Matt Withrow (3-3  4.06 ERA  31.0 IP  17 BB  35 K)
 
FIRST PITCH – The Dallas Baptist Baseball Team concludes its three-game road trip on Tuesday versus No. 24 Texas Tech University.  First pitch is scheduled for 2 pm and will conclude a stretch of five consecutive games against Big 12 Conference opponents.

DBU (25-10) has won seven of its last ten, including a recent season-long, eight-game winning streak that was snapped last Tuesday against TCU.

The Patriots are 2-4 against opponents from the Big 12 conference this year.  DBU has four more contests remaining versus teams from the Big 12 including two games against both Texas Tech and Oklahoma.
 
Away from Horner Ballpark, DBU has posted a 12-6 record away from the friendly confines and have won eight of their last 10 on the road. 

Dallas Baptist faces its third team ranked in the Top 25 season when they take on Texas Tech tomorrow.  The Patriots have dropped each of their first two games versus Top 25 teams, including a 5-4 loss to No. 21 TCU and 5-0 at No.15 Texas earlier in year.

DBU's 25-10 record this year could be the sign of good things to come.  The 2012 team and 2008 clubs were each 25-10 through their first 35 games as well.  2012 was the most recent year Dallas Baptist advanced to the NCAA Regional Tournament and the 2008 squad was the first team in school history to earn a NCAA Division I post-season birth.
 
RECENT ACTION – The Patriots took the first contest on Friday versus Baylor at Horner Ballpark in a 12-8 win.  After falling behind 2-0 in the first inning, DBU immediately countered with three runs in its first at bat to take a lead that they would never relinquish.
 
Another three-run frame in the third pushed the Patriots' advantage to 6-2 on a three-run homer from senior, KJ Alexander.  Dallas Baptist would extend their lead to 10 with two more runs in the fourth and four in the fifth.

Baylor would not go away quietly as the Bears posted a five run seventh to narrow the deficit to 12-8.  Redshirt-senior, Josh Urban, came out of the bullpen to silence the Baylor rally, allowing just one run over three innings of work to earn the first save of his career.
 
On Saturday, the venue switched to Baylor Ballpark in Waco, Texas for a doubleheader.  In game one, the Patriots once again got out to a quick start, scoring in the first inning with a two-spot on the board.
 
DBU increased its edge in the fourth with a three-run homer from junior, Drew Turbin. The team utilized the long ball often this weekend, as Alexander smacked a solo shot in the eighth, his second of the season and in the series. 
 
The run provided solid insurance for DBU, after the Bears rallied in the fifth inning for three runs.  DBU starter, Cy Sneed, would maneuver around the blemish and logged 6.2 innings for his sixth win.
 
Sophomore, Brandon Koch, finished the final 2.1 innings, striking out six and walking just one, to earn his fifth save of the year.
 
Sophomore, Daniel Salters, led a trio of hitters with multi-hit games, tallying three on the afternoon.  Alexander and Turbin each added a pair of base knocks in a nine-hit afternoon for the club.
 
Going for the sweep in the nightcap of the twinbill, the Patriots were defeated 7-4 by Baylor.  For the third-straight game, DBU crossed the plate twice in the first inning.  Freshman David Martinelli, and sophomore, Austin Listi, each collected RBI singles to get the offense on track once again.
 
The Bears cut the deficit in half in the fourth inning by putting a run on the board.  A six-run sixth inning by Baylor would end up spelling doom for the Patriots. DBU scratched two runs across in their half of the seventh, but that would be as close as they would come, as Josh Michalec came on to record his 12th save of the season.
 
PLAYERS TO WATCH – Senior, Mike Wesolowski, boasts the highest batting average on the squad at .304.  He's the lone Patriot above the .300 mark and is riding a team-high, nine-game hitting streak.  Wesolowski has also reached base safely in 13 straight contests.  The Mesa, Arizona, native has tallied a hit in 14 of the team's last 16 contests and leads the team with 42 hits.
 
Freshman, David Martinelli, picked up three hits over the weekend series, with a pair coming in Friday's home victory.  The first-year outfielder for the Patriots scored a run and added an RBI double in the affair.  In game two of Saturday's double-header, Martinelli added another RBI for his 21st of the season.  His .292 average is second best on the club through 35 games.
 
Sophomore, Daniel Salters, produced a 1-for-4 showing in Friday's win against Baylor.  The catcher also scored twice and drove in two more in the 12-run outburst.  In the first affair of the doubleheader, Salters ripped three hits for his team leading 12th multi-hit game.  The Eufala, Oklahoma, native is now hitting .271 and is tied for first on the team with 26 RBI.  He also owns the club's best slugging percentage at .496.
 
DBU sophomore center fielder, Austin Listi, produced a pair of multi-hit efforts on the weekend.  His three-hit day on Friday tied a season-high, and the outfielder also compiled two RBI and scored a run.  In the team's loss, Listi recorded a 2-for-4 showing and picked up an RBI, to tie him with Salters for the team lead.
 
Junior, Drew Turbin, had a solid weekend in the lead-off spot, recording at least a hit and scoring a run in all three contests.  The monster day for the Hayden, Idaho, native came in Saturday's 6-3 triumph, where he posted two hits, including a three-run homerun and scored two runs.  Turbin is now batting .294 on the year and has started the last 12 games in the lead-off role.
                               
ON THE BUMP – Through 317.2 innings, DBU hurlers have allowed 144 runs, 114 earned, to compile a 3.23 ERA for second best mark in the Missouri Valley Conference.  In addition, the Patriots lead the league with 316 punch outs.

Patriot starters continue to deliver quality outings, including a pair of solid outings by juniors, Paul Voelker, and Cy Sneed.  Both Voelker and Sneed have six wins each after both hurlers won versus Baylor this past weekend.  Completing the weekend rotation is sophomore, Cory Taylore, who leads the staff with 57 strikeouts.  The three have each eclipsed the 50 inning mark this year led by Sneed with 60.1, Voelker with 55.1, and Taylor with 51 total.
 
Sophomore, Drew Smith, has taken the ball in the past two mid-week affairs. The Crowley, Texas, native worked three innings of scoreless, two-hit ball two weeks ago versus Texas Southern.  Last Tuesday at home against TCU, Smith gave up three runs (two earned), five hits, two walks, and recorded a season-high, seven punch outs in five innings of work.
 
Out of the pen, Brandon Koch remains spectacular with an ERA south of 1.00.  His 0.82 clip is the lowest on the staff and his six-strikeout performance on Saturday lifted his total to 40 to lead all relief arms. The Plano, Texas, product has closed out a team-high, five saves on the season.
 
Josh Urban remains a constant force at throwing multiple innings late in ballgames, and is second among relievers with 26 innings on the mound. The right-hander from Dripping Springs, Texas, is also one of three hurlers on the staff with an ERA below 2.50, compiling a total clip of 2.42.
 
Sophomore, Joseph Shaw, has been solid out of the pen as well.  He leads the bullpen with 26.2 innings and is second with 28 strikeouts. Shaw is also second on the staff with four saves on the year.
 
SCOUTING THE RED RAIDERS – No. 24 Texas Tech (28-11) swept Kansas State this past weekend.  It was the first Big 12 series sweep for the Red Raiders since 2011 and first sweep of Kansas State since 2004.  They are 7-3 over their last 10 games and own an impressive 21-4 record at home.

Eric Gutierrez leads the offense with a .350 average, which ranks sixth in the Big 12 conference.  The Big 12 Player of the Week is tied for second in the league with 49 hits, is tops in home runs on the club with six, and second on the team with 33 RBI.  

Adam Kirsch leads the team with 34 RBI's.  He also paces the offense with a team-high 16 doubles.

Another huge reason behind Texas Tech's success this year has been their stellar fielding.  They have only committed 31 errors on the year and have a .980 fielding percentage.

The pitching staff has compiled a 3.30 ERA through 349 innings of work. Opponents are being held to a .258 average and have been struck out 258 times by Red Raider's pitching.

Johhny Drozd has been one of the nation's top relievers this year.  He has posted a 4-0 record to go along with 3 saves and a 1.80 ERA in 16 appearances.

SERIES HISTORY – The Patriots trail in the all-time series, 13-8, with the squads splitting both games last year.  Last year, the home teams prevailed at their own venues with the Patriots winning 10-9 at Horner Ballpark and the Red Raiders taking a 7-2 edge in Lubbock, Texas.
 
In the last meeting in Lubbock, DBU opened the game with a 1-0 advantage, but that would quickly be erased by a four-run second frame that saw the Red Raiders go up for good. Texas Tech would add a pair in the fifth inning and one in the eighth to complete the 7-2 decision.
 
Cory Taylor got the start and pitched an inning, and would be lifted in the second. He allowed four runs on two hits while walking three and striking out two.
 
All five pitchers that saw action that game return to DBU's roster this year. Junior, Jay Calhoun, tossed 0.1 of an inning, giving up two walks, while Voelker logged 3.2 innings of relief.  He surrendered two runs on four hits and fanned three.  Smith pitched two scoreless innings while giving up two hits.  Koch tossed the eighth inninng, allowing a run on two hits, while striking out a pair.
 
Last year at the plate versus the Red Raiders, Listi went 4-for-10 in two games.  Alexander was 4-for-6, with a pair of hits in both games, including a home run.  Redshirt sophomore, Justin Wall, added an RBI single in the 10-9 victory.
 
UP NEXT – Dallas Baptist will play four in a row at Horner Ballpark for the first time in over a month when they welcome Missouri Valley Conference foe, Evansville, April 18-19.  This three-game series marks the first conference match-up at home for DBU.

Game one is on Friday at 6:30 pm.  Saturday, the two teams will meet in a double-header with the first game starting at 1 pm.  The series finale will start 30-45 minutes following the conclusion of game one. 
 
After the series versus Evansville, DBU welcomes Stephen F. Austin to the confines of Horner Ballpark for the second of a home-and-home series. The Patriots prevailed earlier in the campaign at SFA by a final of 20-10.  First pitch is 6:30 pm.