EVANSVILLE, Ind .— The University of Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles baseball team flies west February 14 for the first pitch of the 2014 calendar and start a season-opening three-game series at California State University Stanislaus. The first pitch February 14 and February 15 is slated for 8 p.m. (CST), while the February 16 series finale is set for 1 p.m. (CDT).
Coverage of the Eagles' games, including live stats and audio broadcasts, is available at gousieagles.com.
The Eagles open the 2014 home schedule February 21 when they start a three-game series with Grand Valley State University at the USI Baseball Field. USI and GVSU will play at 2 p.m. February 21, 1 p.m. February 22, and noon February 23.
SCREAMING EAGLES BASEBALL NOTES:
USI Baseball in 2013. The Eagles were 30-18 overall record and 19-16 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference's East Division in 2013.
The GLVC in 2014. USI is picked to finish third in the GLVC East Division in a preseason vote of the league's 16 head coaches. The Eagles will be working to appear in the GLVC Tournament for the first time in three seasons.
Pitching rotation stocked for 2014. The USI pitching staff, which returns four starters, was strong last season with a staff ERA of 3.03 in 48 games and 400.2 innings of work. Senior right-hander and first-team All-GLVC East Matt Bowles (Mt. Washington, Kentucky) led the staff with a 9-3 record and 57 strikeouts, while senior right-hander Brandon Shaw (Cuba, Illinois) had a team-best 2.41 ERA and four saves in 21 games, six starts, and 67.1 innings of work.
Eagle hitters look for consistent production. The Eagle hitters averaged 5.5 runs per game and hit .295 as a squad last season, but were held to two runs or less 12 times in 2013.
Leading returning hitters. First-team All-GLVC East performers Hamilton Carr (Evansville, Indiana), a sophomore outfielder, and Brent Weinzapfel (Evansville, Indiana) led the Eagles at the plate in 2013. Carr, who was the team's lead-off hitter, batted a team-best .377 and 20 stolen bases, while Weinzapfel was second with a .373 mark and tied for first on the squad with 31 RBIs.
On the run in 2013. The Eagles were on the run in the final 20 games of 2013, stealing 53 bases of 61 attempts. Overall, USI was 81-of-108 in stolen bases attempts.
Archuleta at the helm. USI Head Coach Tracy Archuleta has a USI record of 263-137 (.658) in seven seasons and is 401-261 (.606) in 12 seasons as a head coach. He was named the ABCA Division II Coach of the Year after leading the Screaming Eagles to the 2010 national championship.
Cal State Stanislaus in 2014. The Warriors of Cal State Stanislaus lost both ends of a doubleheader to open 2014, losing 8-4 and 6-5 to Fresno Pacific University at home February 7. The doubleheader slated for February 8 was cancelled due to weather.
USI vs. Cal State Stanislaus and the west coast. The Eagles are playing the Warriors for the first time in the history of the programs and are making their first trip to the west coast. Historically, USI won its only game with a west coast school in 2010 when it defeated the University of California-San Diego for the NCAA Division II National Championship in Cary, North Carolina.
