Overall Record: 13-3Record Last Week: 4-1Recent ResultsWednesday, March 5 – won vs. Cincinnati, 7-0Wednesday, March 5 – won vs. Cincinnati, 11-4Friday, March 7 – lost vs. Ball State, 8-10 (10 innings)Saturday, March 8 – won vs. Ball State, 24-1Sunday, March 9 – won vs. Ball State, 26-3Upcoming Schedule (times Eastern)Tuesday, March 11 – at No. 17 Indiana – 4:05 p.m.Wednesday, March 12 – vs. Northern Kentucky – 4 p.m.Friday, March 14 – at Alabama – 7:35 p.m.Saturday, March 15 – at Alabama – 7:05 p.m.Sunday, March 16 – at Alabama – 2:05 p.m.Player of the week nomineeMicheal Thomas5-11 – R-Sr. – C – Elizabethtown, Ky. (Elizabethtown)Week Stats: .471 (8-for-17), 2 2B, 2 HR, 13 RBI, .941 SLG%, .500 OB%Notes: Fifth-year senior catcher Micheal Thomas had a prolific weekend at the plate in leading No. 22 Kentucky to a series win over Ball State, hitting .615 (8-for-13) during the three-game set … Thomas belted two doubles and two homers, driving in 13 runs in three games … A native of Elizabethtown, Ky., Thomas had a career-high 4-for-6 game on Friday, with three RBI and a double … On Saturday, Thomas smashed his first homer of the year, a three-run shot, as part of a career-high six RBI game, going 3-for-4 … In Sunday’s win, Thomas belted a three-run homer, finishing with four RBI … On the year, Thomas has hit .391 (18-for-46), with five doubles, two homers and 20 RBI in 14 games and 13 starts, owning a .500 on-base percentage and a .630 slugging mark … He leads UK with an average of 4.55 pitches seen per plate appearance in 2014, while owning a team-high 11 two-out RBI and a .529 average (9-for-17) with two outs. Pitcher of the week nomineeDylan Dwyer6-1 – So. – LHP – Murray, Ky. (Calloway County)Week Stats: 1-0, 0.00 ERA, CG, SHO, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 SO, .107 opp. avg.Notes: Sophomore southpaw Dylan Dwyer threw a complete-game shutout on Wednesday against Cincinnati, becoming the first player in modern UK history to throw a complete-game shutout in a midweek game … A native of Murray, Ky., Dwyer scattered three singles in his third career start, walking two and striking out a career-high eight … He retired 10 consecutive hitters from the second to sixth innings while throwing 65 strikes in 113 pitches … It marked the first complete game from a UK pitcher in a midweek game since Greg Dombrowski in 2005 … On the year, Dwyer has made three midweek starts, owning a 1-0 record and a 3.00 ERA in 15 innings, allowing just 10 hits and striking out 16. Freshman of the week nomineeJaVon Shelby6-3 – Fr. – 2B – Lexington, Ky. (Tates Creek)Week Stats: .273 (6-for-22), 2 2B, 3B, HR, 5 RBI, .591 SLG%, .360 OB%Notes: Freshman second baseman JaVon Shelby started all five games during No. 22 Kentucky’s week, belting his first extra bases with two doubles, one triple and one homer, driving in five RBI … Shelby had a .591 slugging and a .360 on-base percentage during the week, batting .273 (6-for-2) with seven runs … On Wednesday, Shelby went 2-for-4 with a double and a homer, marking his first career extra bases … Owned a hit in the series opener vs. Ball State and an RBI and run in the second game … In the finale, Shelby went 2-for-4 with three runs, two RBI, a double, triple and a walk, also getting plunked by a pitch … Shelby, the brother of former UK All-SEC infielder John Shelby (2004-06) and the son of former MLB star John T. Shelby, has hit .229 in his first career 11 games, making seven starts in 16 games. Team notesThe 22nd-ranked Kentucky baseball team completed a five-game week with three wins, including a midweek sweep over Cincinnati and a historic three-game weekend series win over Ball State, that saw the Wildcats score the most runs in a series in program history. Kentucky (13-3) will face another five-game week, traveling to No. 17 Indiana on Tuesday at 4:05 p.m. ET, before hosting Northern Kentucky at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday. UK will then open Southeastern Conference play by traveling to Alabama for a three-game series, starting on Friday at 7:35 p.m. ET at The Joe. The Wildcats posted a 7-0 win over Cincinnati in the opener of a Wednesday doubleheader, getting the first complete-game shutout in a midweek game in modern program history from sophomore lefty Dylan Dwyer (1-0, 3.00 ERA). UK then swept the twinbill with the Bearcats with a 13-2 win in the nightcap. UK took a three-run lead into the ninth inning in the series opener on Friday vs. Ball State, before the Cardinals plated three runs to equal the game, with UK allowing a two-out error to plate the tying runs, with another error in the 10th inning allowing the game-winning runs to score. In the second game of the series, UK pounded the Cardinals 24-1, behind the NCAA-leading eighth homer of the year from A.J. Reed. UK then posted a 26-3 win over BSU in the rubber match, with catcher Micheal Thomas homering for the second straight game and Max Kuhn belting his first homer of 2014. UK’s 58 runs over the three-game weekend shattered the previous record of 47 runs scored in a three-game series with Tennessee Martin in 2007.The Wildcats plated 76 runs during their five-game week, with a .385 average, 24 extra-base hits, nine steals, 17 hit batters and a .504 on-base percentage. In 16 games in 2014, UK has hit a SEC-leading .345 with 45 doubles, four triples, 14 homers and 182 runs scored, stealing 36 bases. On the mound, UK has a 2.51 team ERA in 143.1 innings, walking 50 and striking out 105, with UK fielding .965 and turning 15 double plays. Individually, centerfielder Austin Cousino leads the SEC with a .443 average, with eight doubles, two triples, one homer and 10 RBI, stealing seven bases. Reed leads the NCAA in homers (eight) and RBI (28), with four doubles and a .579 on-base percentage. Thomas has hit .391 with five doubles, two homers and 20 RBI, with leftfielder Ka’ai Tom hitting .362 with four doubles, 10 RBI and six steals. Kuhn has a .353 average with seven doubles, one homer and 17 RBI. Rightfielder Kyle Barrett has hit .343 with four doubles, one homer, 14 RBI and eight steals. UK has used the weekend rotation of Reed (3-0, 1.38 ERA) on Friday and Chandler Shepherd (3-0, 2.42 ERA) on Saturday. UK has started Kyle Cody (2-0, 1.35 ERA) in three games, with Andrew Nelson (1-0, 1.93 ERA) starting on Sunday vs. Ball State. In the bullpen, junior Spencer Jack (1-0, 0.00 ERA) has appeared in seven games, with freshman Logan Salow (1-0, 0.00 ERA0 appearing in five games, striking out 10 of the first 19 hitters he has faced in his career.

Related Stories

View all