GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG baseball opens the 2017 Southern Conference Tournament Presented by Holston Gases Wednesday night against the Samford Bulldogs at Fluor Field in Greenville, S.C. The Spartans earned the three seed in the SoCon Tournament after having gone 31-21 in the regular season and 14-10 in SoCon play. Samford enters as the six seed after going 31-24 and 11-13 in conference action.
The Southern Conference tournament will feature live stats for every game, will all games being streamed. The games will be streamed on the SoCon Digital Network with the championship games being played on ESPN3. Links for each game and live stats services will be on the UNCG baseball schedule page.
Winner of Wednesday's game will play Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. Loser will play in the loser's bracket of the double elimination tournament and will face the loser of the ETSU, Western Carolina contest at 12:30 p.m. All games are scheduled to be played at Fluor Field, home of the Greenville Drive. With potential inclement weather, the tournament's alternate site is Latham Stadium at Furman University. Be sure to follow @UNCGBaseball on Twitter for schedule updates.
Probable Pitching Matchup
Game 1 - UNCG | Bryce Hensley. Jr. - LHP (6-7, 4.64 ERA, 75.2 IP, 69 Ks) vs. Samford | Cody Shelton, So. - RHP (5-2, 2.26 ERA, 59.2 IP, 56 Ks)
A Little History -- Samford
The Spartans and Bulldogs have played 28 times in school history. Samford owns a 19-10 advantage in that time. The last time out, these teams faced off in a three-game series with the Bulldogs notching the series victory in Birmingham. In the first round of the 2016 SoCon Tournament, Samford knocked off UNCG, 8-5. The Spartans look to win the first game of the SoCon tournament for the first time since the 2008 season when the Spartans defeated Wofford, 14-5.
Scouting the Spartans
Recent Games
UNCG comes into the tournament after falling in two of three games to the Samford Bulldogs. The Spartans ended the last weekend of the regular season with a 14-7 victory over Samford. UNCG got starts of at least 5.0 innings from all three starters over the weekend. After scoring one run in the first two games of the Samford series, the offense scored double-digit runs on back-to-back Sundays after having defeated The Citadel, 15-5 on May 14.
Offense
Table Setters
Ben Spitznagel - Spitznagel has made 46 starts this season, hitting at the lead off, or number two spot in the order. The second team All-SoCon performer hits at a .352 average and owns a .423 on-base percentage. He has stolen 12 bases and has gone for extra bases 12 times. He is second on the team with 46 runs scored. Spitznagel ended UNCG's triples drought, leading off the series finale against The Citadel with his fourth three-bagger of the season. It was the first triple in 14 games for the nation's top triples-hitting team.
Caleb Webster - The SoCon's Freshman of the Year hits at a .391 batting average in 43 games this season. The freshman leads the team with 13 doubles. His 37 RBI is third-best on the team and scored 34 runs. He has hit in the second, fifth and sixth spots in the order. Webster was a first team All-SoCon selection. He has recorded a .974 fielding percentage, having made just three errors at the hot corner this season.
Andrew Moritz - Moritz is a first team All-SoCon selection, having played in 51 games this season. The sophomore has a .402 career batting average which ranks as the best batting average in school history. Moritz is currently 14th in the country with six triples this season. The sophomore has scored a team-high 54 runs this season and has stolen a team-best 14 bases.
Power
Cesar Trejo - Trejo leads the team with nine home runs this season and has driven in 53 runs.
He is a second team All-SoCon selection as the designated hitter. A D1baseball.com Freshman All-American and Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American in 2016, Trejo hits at a .301 average this season in 40 games. The sophomore has a .569 slugging percentage having hit ten doubles and a pair of triples. Trejo has hit as the cleanup hitter or fifth spot of the batting order this season. In the 2016 SoCon Tournament, Trejo earned All-Tournament team honors and will look to repeat that this week.
Michael Goss - Goss hits at a .316 average this season and has driven in 43 runs. In the victory over VMI on Sunday, Goss went 3-for-5 with a three-run home run, four RBI and a run scored.
He saw his 15-game hit streak snapped on Friday night at Ohio State, but has recorded a hit in 36of 46 games this season. Goss's total of six home runs this season is second-most on the team and he owns a .520 slugging percentage.
Tripp Shelton - Shelton provides sneaky pop from the shortstop position. Shelton has hit five home runs, all within the 22 games. Shelton has hit three home runs in each of his first two seasons. The junior has made 126 career starts at shortstop and has helped turn 20 double plays.
Starting Pitching
Bryce Hensley - Will be making his 15th start of the season. Hensley has worked as the series opener in eight games. In SoCon play, Hensley has logged 41.1 innings, striking out 28 hitters. He racked up a season-high 13 strikeouts in a 6-1 victory over Princeton back in March. Hensley has earned six quality starts and has struck out at least two hitters in every appearance. When Hensley goes 6.0 innings, UNCG is 11-2.
Relief Pitching
Andrew Wantz - Wantz has made a team-high 22 appearances on the season. The right-hander has gone 5-4 in 55.1 innings of work. He has struck out 58 hitters this season and has 191 strikeouts in his career. Wantz works in any tough situation needed and has earned four saves this year.
Jack Maynard - Maynard was a late addition to the bullpen after serving as the Friday night starter for the first seven weeks. He was the only reliever used in the weekend series with The Citadel. He went 3.0 innings Friday night, striking out seven hitters without allowing a run. He struck out three batters in 1.2 innings in the finale. He has fanned 71 hitters and currently leads the team in that category.
Brandon Stephens - Stephens has worked in 15 games, making one start this season. He logged a scoreless inning at Elon, striking out two batters in an inning of work. Against VMI, the freshman threw 2.0 innings in UNCG's 8-5 victory. Stephens induced a 5-4-3-2 triple play against the first batter he faced in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Scouting the Bulldogs
Recent Games
Samford dropped two of three games in Johnson City, Tenn. last weekend against the ETSU Buccaneers. The Bulldogs currently sit in sixth-place. Samford can jump up to the fifth seed in the SoCon tournament with a sweep of UNCG this weekend, and could fall as far as seventh. Earlier this week against Jacksonville State, Samford earned a 6-1 victory.
Offense - Players to Watch
T.J. Dixon - Dixon has started all 55 games, hitting at a .332 average. He leads the team with 41 RBI and has scored a team-best 46 runs. His 21 stolen bases ranks second in the league. He was a preseason second team All-SoCon selection. Recorded hits in all three games against ETSU.
Austin Edens - After hitting 19 homers last season, Edens is in the top three of home runs for the Bulldogs, having hit nine this season. A former SoCon Freshman of the Year, He was a first team-selection as a sophomore and a second team NCBWA All-American. He was a preseason All-American and was a preseason All-SoCon selection. Edens hits at a .266 average, having made 52 starts this year.
Starting Pitching
Cody Shelton - The sophomore has taken over as the Friday night starter for five of the last six weekend's. Shelton has earned a 2.26 ERA, ranking fourth in the SoCon. Since taking over on Friday nights, Shelton has gone at least 6.0 innings in four of five starts. His last outing against ETSU, he earned a victory after throwing 8.1 innings, scattering three hits, and struck out four hitters.
Relief Pitching
Wyatt Burns - Second team All-SoCon after leading the league with 12 saves this season. Recorded a 4-1 record in 26 appearances. In 44.0 innings pitched, he has struck out 41 batters with eight walks. His 2.45 ERA is third-best on the team. Burns' 12 saves ranks 11th in the country, and best in the SoCon. The junior was a preseason second team All-SoCon selection and was named to the NCBWA preseason Stopper of the Year watchlist. In his appearance against UNCG this season, Burns gave up two hits and stranded the bases loaded to help Samford earn the win.
Jared Brasher - Brasher has appeared in 21 games this season, logging 29.2 innings. Brasher has proved to have swing and miss stuff, striking out 44 hitters. He has earned a 3-0 record. When earning the wins, Brasher threw 3.0 innings, allowing a total of five hits in those outings. Brasher earned a save in a victory over Alabama State. Against UNCG this season, Brasher Threw 2.0 innings, allowing two hits and striking out three batters.
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