Marshall University Athletics
Baseball Set For C-USA Showdown With UAB
4/25/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 25, 2008
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Thundering Herd baseball team is set for a three-game Conference USA showdown with UAB, starting Friday, April 25-27 at Jerry D. Young Memorial Field in Birmingham, Ala. Friday's game is slated for 8:00 p.m. ET, with Saturday's game to begin at 3:00 p.m. ET. The series finale will start at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Marshall enters weekend action with a 20-20-1 overall record and is 7-7-1 in C-USA play, while UAB stands at 18-22 on the season, and 3-9 in conference action.
The Herd posted its second C-USA sweep of the season when it took three games from UCF last weekend at Appalachian Power Park. Marshall then dropped a midweek decision to Kent State before winning a slugfest at Ohio.
Against Kent State, Brandon Casamassima finished 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI, but a three-run second inning lifted the Golden Flashes to a 4-1 victory, as the Herd was held to just five hits in the contest.
In a 17-12 victory over Ohio, Victor Gomez finished 4-for-5 with his seventh home run and Marshall posted a season-best 22 hits and a season-high in runs scored with 17 to secure the win against the Bobcats.
The Herd will continue with its weekend rotation, throwing left-hander Andrew Blain in Friday's game. In nine appearances (eight starts), he has struck out 28 batters in 46.2 innings and registered a 4.63 ERA en route to a 2-3 record.
UAB will send right-hander James Oliver to the mound Friday night. Oliver has a 3-2 record and a 5.84 ERA in 10 appearances (four starts). Oliver has fanned 12 batters in 24.2 innings of work and has given up 18 runs on 24 hits.
Marshall's Steve Blevins will toss the second game. The right-hander has tossed 56.2 innings en route to a team-best 5-2 record (3-1 C-USA). He has whiffed 45 batters and has walked just 18 opponents. He has a 5.08 ERA and has held opposing batters to a modest .246 batting average.
Mitch Kloskowski will make his tenth start of the season Saturday for the Blazers. He is 5-2 in 62.1 innings pitched so far this season and has amassed 43 strikeouts.
Herd sophomore Dan Straily will take the hill in the series finale. The right-hander has 36 strikeouts and 5.17 ERA (47 innings of work) He has a 3-2 record on the season which includes a six-inning one-hit performance against Memphis earlier this season.
UAB's Kyle Roberson will take the mound with a 4-4 record. He has issued 34 strikeouts in 41.2 innings on the hill and has given up 26 runs on 45 hits.
Free GameTracker will be provided for this weekend's games by visiting www.HerdZone.com.
