Kentucky returns to the road in the Southeastern Conference for the first time in three weeks this weekend when they face No. 29 Mississippi State in a three-game set at Dudy Noble Stadium in Starkville, Miss.
Friday?s game is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast in the Lexington area on WXRA 1580-AM. Saturday?s first pitch is slated for 3 p.m. ET and the series will wrap up Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET. The final two games of the series will be broadcast in Lexington on WLXO 96.1-FM. All three games can be heard online at the official website for Kentucky athletics, www.UKathletics.com.
The series marks a homecoming for Wildcat skipper John Cohen, who played his college ball Ron Polk and the Bulldogs from 1988-90. In his time with Mississippi State, Cohen led the Bulldogs to an SEC Championship in 1989 and the College World Series in 1990. He was named first team All-SEC in 1990 after leading the team in RBIs.
?It?s great to see old friends and it?s a fun atmosphere for me to bring our club to for the first time,? Cohen said. ?But once the first pitch is thrown it is about us getting better and competing as hard as we can.?
Kentucky (19-17, 2-12 SEC) enters the game having alternated wins and losses in its last 11 games. The Wildcats lost Wednesday at Cincinnati, 7-2, after beating Northern Kentucky, 10-4, on Tuesday. Last weekend, Kentucky dropped two of three to Auburn, including a tough 4-3 loss on Sunday.
Mississippi State (24-10, 7-7 SEC) is fresh off a mid-week sweep of South Alabama. In its last conference action, dropped two of three to Georgia on the road. The Bulldogs will welcome the home games as they are 18-2 at the friendly confines of Dudy Noble Field, which has a capacity of 15,000.
?I think our team will handle the atmosphere great,? Cohen said. ?The reason you want to play in the SEC is to play in an environment like this. We?re excited about it and we?ll be ready to go out and compete.?
Friday night?s pitching match up will feature Kentucky junior Kalen Gibson (4-1, 5.01 ERA) against Alan Johnson (2-4, 3.28). The Wildcats have yet to name starters for Saturday and Sunday while the Bulldogs will send Todd Doolittle and Jon Crosby to the hill.
Kentucky?s pitching has come around lately as five of its past eight opponents have failed to score more than four runs, including Auburn twice last weekend. The improvement has come as Aaron Tennyson has moved to the rotation and Scott Green has assumed the closer role.
In four starts this year, Tennyson is 1-1 with a miniscule 2.84 ERA. Meanwhile, Green has been nearly untouchable in relief, picking up a win and two saves in six appearances while allowing just two hits. He has saved both of Kentucky?s conference victories.
Offensively, senior J.B. Schmidt and juniors Michael Bertram and J.P. Lowen have carried the torch recently. Schmidt has taken over the top spot in the line up recently and is hitting .356 from the spot.
Bertram is Kentucky?s top hitter for average at .366. He has also shown the best eye at the plate with 29 walks en route to a .490 on base percentage, which ranks sixth in the conference. Lowen has been crushing the ball lately after struggling to open the year. In his last 12 games, he is hitting .342 with 12 RBIs and five extra-base hits.
Last year, Kentucky took two of three in Lexington. Gibson earned the Wildcats lone win on Friday night.
