Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Western Kentucky
Players Mentioned
Racers Welcome Rival WKU to Reagan Field Tuesday
4/17/2017 2:34:00 PM | Baseball
GAME 37
Murray State (16-19) vs. Western Kentucky (11-25)
April 18, 2017
First Pitch: 6 p.m.
Series History: MSU leads the all-time series 71-51-1
Last Meeting: MSU 9, WKU 10 – April 4, 2017
Stadium: Reagan Field
Dimensions: 330 (LF) | 400 (CF) | 330 (RF)
Live Stats
Twitter In-Game: @RacersBaseball
First Pitch
After playing seven of their last eight games on the road, the Racers return to Reagan Field for a four-game homestand beginning Tuesday against Western Kentucky. Both teams are coming off 0-3 conference weekends. MSU is 8-8 at home in 2017 while the Hilltoppers are 3-8 on the road.
Inside the Matchup
The Racers' comeback two weeks ago at WKU came up short in a 10-9 loss at Denes Field. Tuesday's game will be the first visit to Reagan Field from the Hilltoppers since 2012, which was a 10-2 victory for the Racers. MSU is 45-22 at home all-time against WKU and has won 2-of-3 lately at Reagan Field vs. the Hilltoppers.
Hot Streak
During his current 14-game hitting streak, Jack Hranec leads the Racers with a .404 batting average. Over that span, Hranec has recorded eight multi-hit games, eight extra-base hits and 13 RBIs while slugging .632 and reaching base safely at a .433 clip.
Scouting Western Kentucky
The Hilltoppers are led by Colie Currie's .331 batting average as he is the only Hilltopper with a .300 or better average in 2017. Currie is also tied with Thomas Peter with a team-best 23 runs scored. Peter leads WKU with seven home runs and 17 extra-base hits this season while his 21 RBIs are the second-most on the squad. Hunter Wood leads the team with 23 ribbies on the year. WKU is hitting .255 overall as a team in 2017, is averaging 4.3 runs scored per game and is 29-of-42 on stolen base attempts.
As a team, the Hilltoppers have a 5.87 ERA on the year with Conner Boyd leading the way with a 3.00 ERA (minimum 10 IPs). Kevin Elder and Ryan Thurston lead WKU with three wins each this season with Thurston leading the way with 64 strikeouts. Paul Kirkpatrick leads the team with 56.1 innings pitched in 2017 while Elder and Jackson Sowell both have a team-leading two saves this season. Second-year head coach John Pawlowski leads the Hilltoppers.
Probable Pitching Matchup
Austin Dubsky (RHP) (2-5, 6.69 ERA) vs. Jeff Ciocco (RHP) (0-3, 8.88 ERA)
