Kats face key road test at Southeastern La.
5/4/2017 5:11:00 PM | Baseball
Games 46-48
Friday, May 5 – Sunday, May 7 • Hammond, La. • Pat Kenelly Diamond
Sam Houston State (30-15, 15-6 SLC) vs. Southeastern La. (29-15, 15-9 SLC) • Game Notes
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HAMMOND, La. – Sam Houston State expects to get Southeastern Louisiana's best shot this weekend. The recently reinvigorated Bearkats will hope to counter and continue its hopes of repeating as Southland Conference regular season champions.
The squads begin a three-game set on Friday at 6 p.m. in the first regular season matchup since 2014 and first in Hammond since May 11-12, 2013. Saturday's middle game is slated for 2 p.m. and Sunday's finale is scheduled for 1 o'clock.
The Bearkats head into the weekend 2 ½ games back of league-leader McNeese, having played three fewer conference games than the Cowboys. The Lions, meanwhile, have countered a slow start to conference play, having won eight of their last conference games and six-consecutive overall.
HITTIN' THE 30-WIN PLATEAU
With a 3-2 victory against Houston on Tuesday, Sam Houston has reached 30-plus victories for the seventh consecutive season. Since the streak began in 2011, among Southland Conference teams, only the Bearkats have accomplished the feat. The Lions need one more league win to match.
The Bearkats have logged 30-plus wins in nine of the last 10 seasons, winning either the Southland regular season or tournament titles in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016. Sam Houston has won 30 or more games 17 times since joining Division I in 1987.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP VS. SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA
Friday's meeting will be the 68th all-time between Sam Houston and Southeastern Louisiana with the Bearkats owning a slight 36-31 advantage including a 7-3 mark over the last 10 games.
Seven of the last 10 matchups have been decided by three runs or fewer including two one-run games. Sam Houston has won the last three regular-season league series against the Lions but have run into difficulty in Hammond, posting a 7-18 record all-time
KEEPING AN EYE ON THE RPI
With 11 games remaining, Sam Houston is looking to continue its climb in the RPI. With a 4-1 record over its last five games, Sam Houston has moved ahead 17 spots in that time frame and currently sits at No. 77.
The Bearkats are 6-4 against top-50 squads. Sam Houston has one game left at No. 33 Texas A&M, three at No. 38 Southeastern Louisiana and one vs. No. 50 Dallas Baptist.
QUOTEABLES:
Head coach Matt Deggs on the upcoming series…
“We expect to continue playing good baseball. We want to go out play our game, throw the first lick and get after it. It will be a dogfight from the word 'go' just like last weekend. They play extremely well together and play in a definitive system that they have for years. It will be a big challenge for us but I know it's one that we'll be up for.”
Head coach Matt Deggs on facing Southeastern Louisiana pitching…
“They can really pitch it. They're a very good ballclub. We're going to have to have a great approach, stay within ourselves and do our job. We've done a great job of that. Two-out knocks have been our theme all year long. We'll have to find ways to reach base, execute and get big two-out RBIs. If we can do that, it's going to be a great series.”
Head coach Matt Deggs on the play of the team recently…
“Obviously, you're going to go through ups and downs in any season. The trick to being a championship ballclub is limiting the downs. You always need to be trending upwards. We've kind of run the gauntlet here over the last weekend a half. It's obviously a stiff test but I think we've held our own and we've played some extremely good baseball. The exciting thing about this ballclub is we have the opportunity to continue getting better. Not every team can always say that. This ballclub still has not reached its full potential and that's something we're all looking forward to.”
