Coming off a sweep of No. 23 and 2016 College World Series participant UC Santa Barbara the Wildcats close out a six-game home stand by hosting Wright State on Tuesday afternoon at Cliff Hagan Stadium. UK then will travel to Cincinnati on Wednesday before returning home to take on Miami (Ohio) in a three-game set this weekend.
The Cats (7-5) had a lights out week to pull their record over .500 after a series of tough-luck one-run losses in the first two weeks of the season. They outscored their three opponents 46-6 in five games, hitting .353 as a team and posting a 1.00 earned run average by the pitching staff. The sweep of UCSB was UK’s first series sweep since taking all three from No. 2 South Carolina on March 16-18, 2012.
The bats were red-hot all week with the Cats ripping 25 extra-base hits and slugging .587 as a team. Junior infielder Riley Mahan won SEC Player of the Week after hitting .500 with five doubles, one home run and knocking home 11 runs, while preseason All-American first baseman Evan White smashed three home run and hit .412.
The Cats’ pitching was dominant, as the five starters combined to post a 0.81 ERA, including Justin Lewis’ perfect game through 7.0 innings on Sunday against UCSB. Freshman Zack Thompson earned his first win against WKU.
WRIGHT STATE NO STRANGER TO SUCCESS ON DIAMOND
Riding a four-game winning streak and a strong start to the season, Wright State will attempt to take down another power conference foe when it arrives in Lexington for Tuesday afternoon’s game against Kentucky. The Raiders played their first six games of the season at No. 10 Clemson and No. 4 South Carolina, going 3-3 and making an appearance in the Top 25 along the way.
Under the direction of first-year head coach Jeff Mercer, Wright State has relied heavily on its pitching and ability to win close games thus far. The Raiders’ four main starters have posted a 1.90 ERA, including Tuesday starter Trevor Swaney’s 1-0, 3.27 mark. Swaney has given up 16 hits and eight walks in 11 innings but managed to minimize the damage.
The Raiders are no stranger to success, having gone 46-17 and reaching the NCAA Regional in Louisville in 2016. They return 16 letterwinners and proved worthy while taking two of three in Clemson to start the season. Since then, they have defeated South Carolina and Pittsburgh as well.
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
UK – Brad Schaenzer (Jr., LHP) – 5 games, 1 start; 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 9.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 10 K
Wright State – Trevor Swaney (RSr., RHP) – 3 games, 2 starts; 1-0, 3.27 ERA, 11.0 IP, 16 H, 4 R, 8 BB, 4 K
GAME DETAILS
Date/Time: Tuesday, March 7 (4 p.m.)
Location (Facility): Lexington, Ky. (Cliff Hagan Stadium)
Radio: UK Radio Network; 98.5 FM-Lexington (Neil Price); ukathletics.com
Broadcast: SECN+ (Dick Gabriel, Doug Flynn)
Follow along with the Cats on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and on the web at UKathletics.com.
‑ GO CATS –
For more information contact:
Matt May
