Key week starts Tuesday vs Houston
4/22/2019 6:54:00 PM | Baseball
Game 38
April 23 • 7:05 pm • Sugar Land • Constellation Field
Sam Houston State (22-15, 14-7 Southland) vs Houston (24-16, 8-7 American)
Live Stats • 90.5 FM • @BearkatsBSB on Twitter
Games 39-41
Sam Houston State (22-15, 14-7 Southland) vs UConn (24-16, 7-8 American)
April 26 • 6:30 pm • Huntsville • Don Sanders Stadium
Live Stats • ESPN+ • @BearkatsBSB on Twitter
April 27 • 3:00 pm • Huntsville • Don Sanders Stadium
Live Stats • @BearkatsBSB on Twitter
April 28 • 11:00 am • Huntsville • Don Sanders Stadium
Live Stats • BSN YouTube • @BearkatsBSB on Twitter
HUNTSVILLE – The Sam Houston State Bearkats will have a chance to make a statement with a four big non-conference games this week, beginning Tuesday against Houston and concluding with three games at Don Sanders Stadium vs UConn.
Each game can be followed via live stats or by following @BearkatsBSB on Twitter.
Tuesday's game vs the Cougars can be heard on KSHU 90.5 FM, while Friday's game vs the Huskies will be aired on ESPN+ with Tom Franklin on the call. Sunday's game can be watched on the Bearkat Sports Network's YouTube page.
The Kats will conclude its season series with the Cougars on Tuesday in a neutral-site game at Sugar Land's Constellation Field in the finale of the Don Sanders Cup series. Houston has already clinched the cup for the first time in the three-year span of the series after having won 2-1 in Houston on March 26 and by a 12-7 margin on April 9 in Huntsville.
Sam Houston is coming off a tough week that saw it drop all four games it played, including a Tuesday midweek game at No. 18 Baylor before being swept for the first time this season over the weekend at Central Arkansas.
Fans planning on attending Tuesday's game vs Houston are to be aware of a 7:05 p.m. start time, in addition to. $5 charge for parking at Constellation Field.
Despite a tough weekend in Conway, the Kats still sit atop the Southland Conference standings and have been led by an offense that is hitting just under .300 for the season. Senior Jordan Cannon enters with a .397 batting average and is vying to become the first Bearkat to hit .400 in a season since Nick Zaleski hit .419 in the 2009 season.
Meanwhile, true freshman Colton Cowser was named to the Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award on Monday, an honor bestowed on the top collegiate hitter in the region consisting of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and New Mexico each year. The freshman has reached base safely in 32 of 37 games this year and is near the top of the Southland statistical standings in batting average (.376), slugging (.624), on-base percentage (.450), hits (53), runs (34) and RBI (37).
The Cougars enter Tuesday red hot, having won seven of their last eight games after a 3-1 week that saw them upset No. 7 Texas A&M and take two out of three from Cincinnati. Third baseman Jared Triolo has been on fire of late and was named the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Monday week that saw him hit .583 with a double and four RBI, while Joe Davis continues to be one of the top sluggers in the nation and ranks seventh in the country with 16 home runs and is 25th in slugging percentage (.690).
Houston's league rival, UConn, had won four of five games going into last weekend before beign swept on the road at No. 12 East Carolina. This will be The Huskies' third trip to the Lone Star State after having already won two of three at Texas State in early March and taking two of three from Houston just two weeks later.
Led by coach Jim Penders, UConn comes into this week at No. 25 in the NCAA's latest RPI report. The Huskies hit .263 as a team with three players carrying averages above .300 for the year. Michael Woodworth leads the team with a .359 mark to go with five home runs and 28 RBI, while Anthony Prato paces the team with 12 doubles and a .454 on-base percentage.
Staff ace, left-hander Mason Feole, is one of the top collegiate arms in the country and entered this year as a preseason all-American after being selected to pitch on the 2018 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team after the 2018 season. He has made eight starts this year and punched out 40 in 43.0 innings with a 3.56 ERA, while six Huskies carry sub-4.00 ERAs going into the week.
CJ Dandeanau's 4-1 mark is the best on the roster, while closer Jacob Wallace has been nearly untouchable with a 2-0 record, eight saves to go with 35 strikeouts, just four walks and a .138 opponent average in just 24.0 innings of work.
