Southland Conference opener Friday
3/10/2011 5:47:00 PM | Baseball
The Bearkats own an 11-2 record and a 10-game winning streak that includes a 7-0 shutout of No. 14 Rice Tuesday night. Other victories for the Kat baseball team have come over Nebraska, Michigan and Massachusetts.
"We're getting a nice mix of good hitting, solid pitching and good defense right now," Sam Houston head coach Mark Johnson said. "But the most important games are ahead as we begin conference play."
UT-Arlington brings a 6-6 non-conference mark into the weekend. Sam Houston and the Mavericks will battle at 6:30 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday, all at Don Sanders Stadium.
The series matches the two top hitting ball clubs in the Southland right now.
Sam Houston boasts the league's best team batting average, hitting .330 after 13 games. UTA stands second with a .324 team mark in 12 games.
Third baseman Ryan Mooney and outfielder Greg Olson of Sam Houston are the top two hitters in the league. Mooney sports a .451 average while Olson is hitting .450.
UTA's Ryan Walker ranks fifth in the early season Southland rankings with a .420 average.
Sam Houston plans to go with the same rotation the Bearkats have used to win back-to-back tournament titles. Matt Shelton will start Friday night while Brent Powers and Brandon Kimbrel are slated for the Saturday and Sunday starts.
Following this weekend's series, the Bearkats head on the road to play at the University of Houston Tuesday night then against Texas State in a Southland series in San Marcos next Friday through Sunday.
