LEXINGTON ? The 21th-ranked Kentucky baseball team welcomes Southeastern Conference front-runner South Carolina to town this weekend for a three-game series beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m. at Cliff Hagan Stadium.
The series resumes Saturday at 6:30 p.m. and concludes on Sunday at 1 p.m. Friday night?s game can be heard in the Lexington area on WLAP 630-AM while the final two games of the series will be broadcast on WXRA 1580-AM.
The seventh-ranked Gamecocks enter with a 30-9 overall record and an 11-4 league mark, which is three games ahead of UK in the SEC Eastern Division. The Wildcats are 27-10 overall and had their best first half of league play in 14 years at 8-7.
Senior southpaw Aaron Tennyson (4-1, 3.25) gets the nod for Kentucky on Friday night against reigning SEC Pitcher of the Week Mike Cisco (5-0, 2.56). A pair of lefties square off on Saturday as UK sends senior Craig Snipp (4-3, 3.03) to the hill against Forrest Beverly (5-2, 5.14).
The series wraps up as the SEC leader in earned-run average, Greg Dombrowski (6-1, 1.86) starts for the Wildcats against right-hander Harris Honeycutt (3-0, 1.95).
The offenses that face the pitching have been good as well. Kentucky features the best scoring offense in the conference, averaging better than 8.4 runs per game. South Carolina is second in the league at 7.5 a contest. Both squads rank in the top 12 in the nation in home runs.
Each team enters the weekend off a win as Kentucky beat rival Louisville, 3-1, on Wednesday night in Louisville. Meanwhile, the Gamecocks downed The Citadel, 11-2.
South Carolina won the series last year in Columbia, but Kentucky scored the series win the last time the two teams met in Lexington, in 2004.
Records
Kentucky ? 27-10, 8-7 SEC
South Carolina ? 30-9, 11-4 SEC
Rankings
Kentucky ? No. 21 Baseball America
Florida – No. 7 Baseball America
Schedule (times Eastern)
Lexington, Ky. (Cliff Hagan Stadium ? 3,000)
Friday, April 21 vs. South Carolina * 6:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 22 vs. South Carolina * 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, April 23 vs. South Carolina * 1 p.m.
Tickets
$5 Reserved Seats; $2 General Admission. Available through the UK Ticket Office by calling (859) 257-1818 or at the ticket window on game day.
Radio
Friday ? WLAP 630-AM in Lexington
Saturday ? WXRA 1580-AM in Lexington
Sunday ? WXRA 1580-AM in Lexington
Television
none
Pitching Match-Ups
Friday at South Carolina
LHP Aaron Tennyson, Sr. (4-1, 3.25) vs. RHP Mike Cicso (5-0, 2.56)
Saturday at South Carolina
LHP Craig Snipp, Sr., (4-3, 3.03) vs. LHP Forrest Beverly (5-2, 5.14)
Sunday at South Carolina
RHP Greg Dombrowski, So., (6-1, 1.86) vs. RHP Harris Honeycutt (3-0, 1.95)
Projected UK Line-Up (Avg-HR-RBI)
C (L) Sean Coughlin (.328-8-31)
-or- (R) Justin Scutchfield (.211-0-7)
1B (R) Ryan Strieby (.355-10-49)
2B (R) John Shelby (.239-9-33)
3B (L) Michael Bertram (.342-4-25)
-or- (R) Matt McKinney (.281-1-11)
SS (S) Ryan Wilkes (.257-1-13)
LF (R) Shaun Lehmann.223-5-16)
CF (L) Antone DeJesus.367-2-21)
RF (R) Collin Cowgill (.328-8-33)
DH (L) Billy Grace (.295-5-24)
Quick Notes
? At No. 21 in the latest Baseball America poll, Kentucky has been ranked each of the past five weeks, reaching as high as No. 19 last weekend.
? Of the 14 main statistical categories, Kentucky leads the SEC in seven, including runs per game at 8.6. The Wildcats are also first in on-base percentage, slugging, RBIs, home runs, doubles and walks.
? Kentucky has won each of its last three home series against ranked teams dating back to last year.
? As a team Kentucky ranks fifth in the nation in home runs and sixth in doubles. The Wildcats are ranked seventh in the nation in slugging percentage.
? At 8-7 in conference play, Kentucky has already surpassed its SEC win total from each of the past two seasons.
? First baseman Ryan Strieby is the only player in the SEC to rank in the top 10 in the league in each of the traditional triple-crown categories of batting average (10th), home runs (5th) and RBIs (1st). He also leads the SEC in doubles with 16 and is third in both slugging and on-base percentage.
? Center fielder Antone DeJesus has been the best leadoff hitter in the SEC this year. He has posted a .475 on-base percentage, which is tops in the SEC among leadoff men and fifth overall. He has scored a first-inning run in 15 of his 33 starts (45.5 percent ).
? Third baseman Michael Bertram is riding a seven-game hitting streak, three short of his season long.
? Kentucky has won each of its last three home series against ranked teams dating back to last year.
? Sophomore Greg Dombrowski leads the SEC in ERA at 1.86. He it the only players in the league with a sub-2.00 ERA.
Kentucky head coach John Cohen quotes
On South Carolina ?
?They are a very good ball club. They hit, pitch and can field and do all three things very well. I have great respect for Ray Tanner and what he?s been able to do there. They lose (Arik) Hempy a couple weeks ago and don?t miss a beat last week at Ole Miss, so that tells you what kind of club they have. It will be a challenge for us.?
On the importance of the series ?
?I think it?s a great series for the fans and it?s great for the players to be involved in a series like this, where you have two top 25 teams playing against each other. But as a coach, we look at it as all the games count the same. A win over South Carolina counts the same as a win over Arkansas or Mississippi State. So, you have to take the big picture view and not get caught up in the fact that they lead the SEC.?
On the match ups ?
?Well, South Carolina?s offense is more left-handed dominated, so I think we match up well against that. We?ll throw a lefty in Aaron Tennyson on Friday night and another lefty in Craig Snipp on Saturday. So, hopefully that will play in our favor a little bit.?
On being 8-7 at the halfway point in SEC play ?
?I think its great. In a league this tough where a pitch here and a hit there can win or lose you games, you just want to compete and be in the middle of it. If you go 14-16 in the SEC, you have a team that can go to the College World Series. So, we?re very pleased with where we are. We?ve had a couple games where we?re one pitch away and could easily be 9-6 or 10-5 right now, but that?s part of it and that?s why we play a 30-game schedule.?
