WKU Baseball returns home for a three-game series against Middle Tennessee State April 17-19.
The Hilltoppers enter the series with a 31-6 overall record and a 9-3 mark in conference play. WKU remains undefeated at home this season, boasting a 22-0 record in Bowling Green. The team is coming off a 5-2 midweek loss at No. 17 Louisville on Tuesday.
Despite the setback, WKU sits atop the Conference USA standings with a half-game lead over Louisiana Tech following a weekend sweep at Liberty. The Hilltoppers outscored the Flames 14-7 across the three-game set.
On the mound, WKU continues to dominate. The Hilltoppers lead Division I baseball with a 2.69 team ERA and have held opponents to a conference-low .219 batting average. The pitching staff has recorded 338 strikeouts while limiting opposing hitters to just 116 walks.
Sophomore Drew Whalen was named Conference USA Pitcher of the Week for his performance in game three at Liberty. Whalen tossed six scoreless innings, allowing just two hits and two walks while striking out six.
Offensively, the Hilltoppers enter the weekend with a .315 team batting average, ranking 25th in the nation. WKU leads CUSA with 390 total hits. Senior Ryan Wideman is hitting .434, sixth-best in Division I. Wideman also leads the conference in hits (66), doubles (17), triples (five) and stolen bases (28).
MTSU comes into the week with a 17-20 record and sits ninth in CUSA with a 3-9 conference record. The Blue Raiders are coming off an 11-2 victory over Belmont. MTSU racked up 16 hits and seven walks in the game but allowed Belmont 12 hits. MTSU holds a 2-9 record on the road.
In their most recent conference series, the Blue Raiders dropped two of three games to Louisiana Tech, getting outscored 18-16 and striking out 20 times across the weekend.
Offensively, MTSU ranks fourth in CUSA with a .291 team batting average and third in total hits with 366. However, their pitching staff holds a 6.06 ERA, seventh in the conference, and opponents are hitting .284 against them. MTSU has also committed a league-worst 66 errors on the season.
The “100 Miles of Hate” series begins Thursday at 6 p.m., continues Friday at 3 p.m., and concludes Saturday with a 1 p.m. first pitch.
Sports Reporter David Quintanilla can be reached at [email protected].
