EVANSVILLE, Ind. — The 18
th-ranked University of Southern Indiana baseball team hits the road in the Great Lakes Valley Conference when it travels to the University of Wisconsin-Parkside for a four-game series Friday and Saturday in Somers, Wisconsin. The Screaming Eagles (21-7, 13-3 GLVC) start the weekend with a three-game lead in the GLVC East, while the Rangers (7-18, 5-13 GLVC) are playing their first home games of the season.
The four-game series, which was originally slated for Saturday and Sunday, was moved up to Friday and Saturday due to concerns about the weather. The first pitch each doubleheader is scheduled for noon each day. Links to live stats for each game can be found on gousieagles.com
SCREAMING EAGLES BASEBALL NOTES:Eagles move up the national poll. The Eagles moved up six spots to 18
th in the latest National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 25 poll. USI is the highest ranked GLVC institution in the NCBWA poll.
USI hurlers leading the GLVC, ranked nationally. USI pitchers are leading the GLVC and rank eighth nationally with a 2.43 ERA in 206.2 innings of work. The Eagles also are leading the GLVC in opponent batting average, holding the opposing hitters to a .247 mark.
Leading USI starters on the bump. USI junior right-hander
Ben Wright (Newburgh, Indiana) leads Eagle starters with a 1.31 ERA in six starts and 41.1 innings of work. Senior right-hander
Matt Bowles (Mt. Washington, Kentucky) has the team-lead in wins with five victories in seven starts, while senior right-handed pitcher/designated hitter
Jonathon Wandling (Evansville, Indiana) has struck out a team-best 40 batters this year.
Leader in the pen. USI junior right-handed closer
Matt Chavarria (Carlsbad, New Mexico) leads all Eagle hurlers with a 0.00 ERA in eight appearances and 11 innings of work. He also has six saves this season.
Pitching in the GLVC. USI junior right-hander
Ben Wright ranks fourth in the GLVC with a 1.31 ERA, while junior right-handed closer
Matt Chavarria is tied for first with his six saves. Tying for third in the GLVC is senior right-handed pitcher/designated hitter
Jonathon Wandling with 40 strikeouts.
Kempf named GLVC Player of the Week. USI sophomore outfielder
Kyle Kempf (Evansville, Indiana) was named the GLVC Player of the Week after hitting .542 with six runs scored and four RBIs. Kempf also hit his first collegiate home run and USI's second of the season.
At the plate in 2014. Sophomore outfielder
Hamilton Carr (Evansville, Indiana) leads the USI hitters with a .438 average in 19 games and 32 plate appearances. Sophomore outfielder
Kyle Kempf follows at .364. Kempf also leads the team in RBIs with 17.
Archuleta at the helm. USI Head Coach
Tracy Archuleta has a USI record of 284-144 (.664) in seven-plus seasons and is 422-268 (.612) in 12-plus 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.
Eagles at the USI Baseball Field. The Eagles are 167-57 (.745) when playing at the USI Baseball Field since 2007 and 247-138 (.642) since 2000.
UW-Parkside in 2014. The Rangers of UW-Parkside is in the middle of a five-game losing streak and has fallen to 7-18 overall and 5-13 in the GLVC. UW-Parkside, currently, sits in sixth place in the GLVC East Division.
USI vs. UW-Parkside. The Eagles lead the all-time series with the Rangers, 32-25, after winning three of four at the USI Baseball Field last spring.
Making rare trip to Wisconsin. USI is making a rare trip to UW-Parkside. The last time the Eagles visited the Rangers in Somers, Wisconsin, was in 2004 when
Tracy Archuleta was the head coach of the Rangers.
| NCBWA DIVISION II POLL (APRIL 8) |
| Rk. | School [1st place] |
| 1. | Tampa (Fla.) [14] |
| 2. | Lander (S.C.) |
| 3. | Minnesota State |
| 4. | West Florida |
| 5. | Chico State (Calif.) |
| 6. | West Texas A&M |
| 7. | Grand Valley State (Mich.) |
| 8. | Lynn (Fla.) |
| 9. | Shippensburg (Pa.) |
| 10. | Cal Poly-Pomona |
| 11. | Southern New Hampshire |
| 12. | Arkansas Tech |
| 13. | Colorado Mesa |
| 14. | Columbus State (Ga.) |
| 15. | Delta State (Miss.) |
| 16. | Lubbock Christian (Texas) |
| 17. | Georgia College |
| 18. | Southern Indiana |
| 19. | Central Missouri |
| 20. | Wilmington (Del.) |
| 21. | Southern Arkansas |
| 22. | Seton Hill (Pa.) |
| 23. | St. Edward's (Texas) |
| 24. | UC San Diego (Calif.) |
| 25. | Mount Olive (N.C.) |
