Troy University Athletics
Trojans Look To Complete Mid-Week Sweep of Blazers
4/22/2009 2:15:00 PM | Baseball
After weeks of travel around the southeast, the Troy University baseball team will finally get to spend some quality time at home over the final five weeks of the season.
After having played just 16 of the first 36 games this season at Riddle-Pace Field, the Trojans will open a stretch tonight that includes 12 of the next 14 games at home.
Troy (24-13) opened that stretch last night against UAB with an 11-3 victory. The Trojans and Blazers (22-18) will face each other again tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Jerry Young Memorial Field in Birmingham.
The game will be available on WTBF-FM 94.7 with Barry McKnight partnering with Ricky Hazel to provide the action. Live stats for the game will be available on TroyTrojans.com.
The Trojans enter play riding a season-high six-game win streak, but the team had played just once in the last nine days after an off week last week followed by weather problems that limited the team to just one game during a weekend trip to Little Rock, Ark.
Because of the down time, the Trojans expect to send a lot of pitchers to the mound in the two games against UAB to get work in preparation for this weekend's Sun Belt Conference home series against the Ragin' Cajuns of Louisiana-Lafayette.
On Wednesday, the Trojans will send either junior right-hander Tim Wheeler (2-3, 10.24) or junior right-hander Andrew Dickinson (1-0, 6.30) to start, but both will see action. Both are coming back from off-season shoulder surgery and have had their ups and downs this year.
The Blazers are set to send freshman left-hander Colin McMurry to the mound on Wednesday. McMurray is an Athens, Ala., native and has a 2-1 mark this year with a 3.79 ERA in nine appearances, including two starts.
Offensively, the Trojans have been led during their six-game win streak by sophomore shortstop Adam Bryant, who is hitting .535 over those six games with 19 runs batted in. Senior third baseman Brett Henry will be looking to extend his streak of games in which he has reached base to 41, dating back to last year.
One Trojan who will be looking to break out of a streak is junior first baseman Ryan Ditthardt. Even though he leads the Trojans with seven homers this year, he has not homered in his last 17 games, which covers a stretch of 71 at bats. Ditthardt did draw his first walk in the last 20 games on Tuesday/ He has now walked just three times in 170 plate appearances this year.
Senior reliever Josh Storm also enters the week still tied with former Trojan Josh Dew for the all-time career saves record at Troy. Storm has 17 saves over his two years at Troy, matching the number Dew posted in 2006-07 seasons.
UAB comes into the mid-week series having won two of three games on the road at Marshall and Southern Miss the last two weekends. The Blazers have won six of their last eight games overall.
The Trojans will be challenged by UAB senior outfielder Brint Hardy, who leads all of college baseball with 35 stolen bases this year. Hardy was hitless in five at bats in Tuesday's game.
After having played just 16 of the first 36 games this season at Riddle-Pace Field, the Trojans will open a stretch tonight that includes 12 of the next 14 games at home.
Troy (24-13) opened that stretch last night against UAB with an 11-3 victory. The Trojans and Blazers (22-18) will face each other again tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Jerry Young Memorial Field in Birmingham.
The game will be available on WTBF-FM 94.7 with Barry McKnight partnering with Ricky Hazel to provide the action. Live stats for the game will be available on TroyTrojans.com.
The Trojans enter play riding a season-high six-game win streak, but the team had played just once in the last nine days after an off week last week followed by weather problems that limited the team to just one game during a weekend trip to Little Rock, Ark.
Because of the down time, the Trojans expect to send a lot of pitchers to the mound in the two games against UAB to get work in preparation for this weekend's Sun Belt Conference home series against the Ragin' Cajuns of Louisiana-Lafayette.
On Wednesday, the Trojans will send either junior right-hander Tim Wheeler (2-3, 10.24) or junior right-hander Andrew Dickinson (1-0, 6.30) to start, but both will see action. Both are coming back from off-season shoulder surgery and have had their ups and downs this year.
The Blazers are set to send freshman left-hander Colin McMurry to the mound on Wednesday. McMurray is an Athens, Ala., native and has a 2-1 mark this year with a 3.79 ERA in nine appearances, including two starts.
Offensively, the Trojans have been led during their six-game win streak by sophomore shortstop Adam Bryant, who is hitting .535 over those six games with 19 runs batted in. Senior third baseman Brett Henry will be looking to extend his streak of games in which he has reached base to 41, dating back to last year.
One Trojan who will be looking to break out of a streak is junior first baseman Ryan Ditthardt. Even though he leads the Trojans with seven homers this year, he has not homered in his last 17 games, which covers a stretch of 71 at bats. Ditthardt did draw his first walk in the last 20 games on Tuesday/ He has now walked just three times in 170 plate appearances this year.
Senior reliever Josh Storm also enters the week still tied with former Trojan Josh Dew for the all-time career saves record at Troy. Storm has 17 saves over his two years at Troy, matching the number Dew posted in 2006-07 seasons.
UAB comes into the mid-week series having won two of three games on the road at Marshall and Southern Miss the last two weekends. The Blazers have won six of their last eight games overall.
The Trojans will be challenged by UAB senior outfielder Brint Hardy, who leads all of college baseball with 35 stolen bases this year. Hardy was hitless in five at bats in Tuesday's game.
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