GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG baseball team returns to Southern Conference action this weekend hosting Furman for a three-game series at the UNCG Baseball Stadium. The Spartans and Paladins will kick off the set Friday at 6 p.m.
All three contests will be streamed in full HD on the SoCon Digital Network and live stats will also be available through www.uncgspartans.com
UNCG is 14-15 overall and 5-4 in league contests sitting just one game behind Samford and Western Carolina for second place and two back of league leader Mercer. Furman enters the weekend at 13-18 and 3-6. The Paladins dropped a 26-7 decision to Winthrop Monday in their last game. Furman was scheduled to face USC Upstate Tuesday but the contest was canceled due to inclement weather.
In its most recent outing Wednesday, the Blue and Gold rallied for a 9-8 win over Wake Forest at home to earn a split of the season series. Senior outfielder Tyler Long's single plated classmate Nick Chapman for the winning run in the bottom of the ninth after senior infielder Aaron Wright tied the contest with a leadoff home run that cleared the batters eye in center field. UNCG rapped out a season-best 17 hits in the game as senior outfielder Eric Kalbfleisch led the way with a career-high four base knocks.
Senior outfielder Zac MacAneney leads the squad with a .352 batting average and is one of five Spartans batting .308 or better through 29 games. UNCG has hit 32 home runs this season and at least one in 11 straight outings. The Paladins are fourth in the league in batting average (.387) and are led by Blake Chisholm who is fifth in the SoCon with a .379 mark.
Furman is making the trip to Greensboro for the second-straight season as the Spartans won two of three in 2014 before the Paladins took an extra-inning decision in the first round of the Southern Conference Baseball Championship. Furman leads the all-time series by a 33-29 margin.
Bits and Pieces: The Spartans have hit a home run in 11-straight games, the longest such streak in program history based on available research ... During the first weekend of league play, UNCG handed Western Carolina just its third series loss in Southern Conference action in three seasons ... The Blue and Gold is 10-3 when compiling double figures in the hit column and 6-0 when scoring 10 or more runs ... The Spartans have surpassed their home run total from last season (25), hitting 32 so far this campaign ... 10 different players have a home run to their credit this season with Wright leading the way with six bombs ... In nine home games this season, the Spartans are 8-2 and are hitting .342 with a slugging mark of .583 and 16 home runs. ... The Spartan pitching staff has struck out 10 or more batters in eight games.
Projected Pitching Matchups
Friday: RHP Ryan Clark (5-2, 3.47) vs. RHP Matt Solter (1-2, 4.08)
Saturday: RHP Andrew Wantz (5-0, 3.92) vs. LHP Grant Schuermann (2-1, 6.14)
Sunday: RHP Michael Bates (0-2, 6.65) vs. RHP Will Gaddis (2-3, 5.88)
Up Next: UNCG makes the trip to Durham Tuesday for its lone meeting of the season with Duke. First pitch at Jack Coombs Field is scheduled for 6 p.m. The teams split a pair of games last year with each squad winning at home.
Keep up with the UNCG baseball team all season by logging on to www.uncgspartans.com and following the Spartans' official Twitter accounts @UNCGBaseball/@uncgsports.
