Baseball Central 2-29-20

Baseball CU Athletics

Tiger baseball changes weekend schedule; CU to play Madonna and Roosevelt in three-game set

CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. — Campbellsville University head coach announced late on Thursday the Tiger baseball team will have a different schedule this weekend than first reported. The Tigers are playing a three-game series with Madonna University Roosevelt University on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 29-March 1
 
The Tigers hosts Madonna at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday and turn around to play Roosevelt at 5 p.m. in the night cap. Madonna and Roosevelt also play at 11 a.m. on Saturday morning for a neutral contest at HIG Field. 
 
On Sunday, Campbellsville has just one game against Roosevelt starting at 1 p.m. ET. 
 
CU Sports Network:
  • All three CU games will air on the Campbellsville University Sports Network as former Tiger Tony Fonzo will call the action all weekend.
  • Fans can tune in on www.campbellsvilletigers.com/watch and also on Apple TV and the ROKU Streaming Apps by searching Campbellsville Sports Network.
Tiger Clawz:
  • Campbellsville enters with a 9-4 record overall including six-straight over William Carey, Midway and Siena Heights. 
  • CU was forced to cancel its games on Tuesday at Martin Methodist due to rain.
  • The Tigers started the year ranked No. 25 in the NAIA Coaches' Poll and currently is 15th in the Perfect Game rankings.
  • Of the four loses, three of them have been by one run. 
  • On the mound, Alexander Salazar has been dominant with a .44 ERA through 20.1 innings and 33 strikeouts. He was named the Mid-South Conference Pitcher of the Week after striking out a career-high 14 against Siena Heights last weekend. 
  • Gage O'Brien, who was named the NCCAA Pitcher of the Week two weeks ago, boasts a 0.64 ERA and is 3-0 on the year through 14 innings. HE's struck out 21 batters and opponents are hitting .180 off the former back-end bullpen righty. 
  • The team ERA (2.18), opponent batting average (0.188), hits allowed (4.85), runs allowed (2.54), earned runs allowed (1.77) and walks allowed (38) are tops in the MSC.
  • The opponent batting average ranks third in the NAIA and ERA is fourth overall in the country.
  • The Tigers are led in hitting by Cale Thompson's .355 average through 11 games. 
  • After redshirting last season, Jalen Horton is hitting .343 through 12 games with a team-high six stolen bases. 
  • The run producers have emerged as Tyler Cox (9 RBI), Eddy Artega (10 RBI) and Tommy Sepulveda (10 RBI). 
  • Defense has been CU's nemesis in the young season with 23 errors through 13 games. The .943 fielding percentage ranks seventh in the Mid-South Conference and opponents have scored 10 unearned runs.
Deeper look at Madonna University:
  • Madonna started the year receiving votes in the NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll but Perfect Game has the Crusaders ranked 18th after the first few weeks of the season. 
  • The Crusaders bring in a 12-3 record and also have one of the best pitching staffs in the NAIA. 
  • Opponents are hitting .208 off the Crusader pitching staff – which is eighth in the country. And their team-ERA sits at 3.2 – good for 16th.
  • Nate Blain is 3-0 on the year with a 1.31 ERA through 20.2 innings and striking out 29. 
  • Daniel Gore is 4-1 through 23 innings and striking out 20. 
  • Offensively, Madonna is hitting an even .300 on the year as a team and is led by Alex Garbacik's .462 average. Frankie Lucska is hitting .426 with five home runs and a team-high 17 RBI. 
  • Noah Moore matches Lucska with a team-high in homers (5) and has 16 RBI. 
  • The Crusaders have outscored their opponents, 120-52.
Deeper look at Roosevelt:
  • The Lakes are 0-5 to start the year and the defense has haunted them the first five games. Averaging 2.2 errors per game, the Lakes have allowed 10 unearned runs per game. 
  • Overall, Roosevelt has been outscored 52-17 this season. 
  • Led on the year by Dom Lentini's average of .428. 
  • The pitching staff has a team-ERA of 12.06 and opponents are hitting .355. Only one pitcher on staff has an ERA below 10 – Jarod Galanos (0.00 ERA through 3.2 innings).
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Players Mentioned

Tony Fonzo

#26 Tony Fonzo

INF
6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
Ventura, Calif.
Jalen Horton

#3 Jalen Horton

OF
5' 5"
Senior
Des Moines, Iowa
Cale Thompson

#8 Cale Thompson

INF
5' 9"
Junior
Campbell, Calif.
Gage O

#32 Gage O'Brien

RHP
6' 4"
Junior
Tucson, Ariz.
Tommy Sepulveda

#5 Tommy Sepulveda

INF
5' 9"
Junior
Catano, Puerto Rico
Alexander Salazar

#21 Alexander Salazar

RHP
6' 0"
Junior
Hyogo, Japan
Tyler Cox

#29 Tyler Cox

OF
5' 11"
Senior
Junction City, Kan.

Players Mentioned

Tony Fonzo

#26 Tony Fonzo

6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
Ventura, Calif.
INF
Jalen Horton

#3 Jalen Horton

5' 5"
Senior
Des Moines, Iowa
OF
Cale Thompson

#8 Cale Thompson

5' 9"
Junior
Campbell, Calif.
INF
Gage O

#32 Gage O'Brien

6' 4"
Junior
Tucson, Ariz.
RHP
Tommy Sepulveda

#5 Tommy Sepulveda

5' 9"
Junior
Catano, Puerto Rico
INF
Alexander Salazar

#21 Alexander Salazar

6' 0"
Junior
Hyogo, Japan
RHP
Tyler Cox

#29 Tyler Cox

5' 11"
Senior
Junction City, Kan.
OF