Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Belmont
Players Mentioned
MSU Welcomes Belmont to Reagan Field This Weekend
4/26/2018 1:54:00 PM | Baseball
GAMES 41-43
Murray State (17-23, 5-13 OVC) vs. Belmont (15-25, 9-12 OVC)
April 27-29, 2018
First Pitch: Friday: 6 p.m., Saturday: 2 p.m., Sunday: 1 p.m.
Stadium: Reagan Field
Dimensions: 330 (LF) | 400 (CF) | 330 (RF)
Series History: Belmont leads the all-time series 19-15
Last Meeting: MSU 4, Belmont 5 – May 26, 2017
Live Stats: Game one | Game two | Game three
Twitter In-Game: @RacersBaseball
First Pitch
MSU closes the month of April continuing its five-game homestand this weekend against Belmont. Both the Racers and Bruins were swept last weekend in their OVC series. MSU is 5-4 at home this season during OVC play while the Bruins are 2-7 in OVC road contests. The Racers are looking to snap a nine-game skid overall.
Inside the Series
The Racers are 8-7 all-time at Reagan Field against the Bruins and went 1-2 at home in 2016 against them, the last time the two teams met in Murray. Belmont eliminated the Racers from last season's OVC Tournament, 5-4. MSU won its OVC Tournament opener against the Bruins two days earlier, 9-3.
Program Record
Davis Sims is tied for the national lead in doubles hit this season with 23 along with UNLV's Bryson Stott. The 23 two-baggers are a new single-season program record, breaking the previous mark of 22 set in 2016 by Tyler Lawrence.
On-Base Streak
Sims has also reached base safely in 36 consecutive games, dating back to February 25. Sims has reached base safely in all but one game this season and has a top-10 active streak nationally.
Scouting Belmont
Matt Cogen leads the team and is the only Bruin hitting above .300 this season with a .365 average in 2018. Cogen leads Belmont in runs (32), doubles (12), extra-base hits (19) and RBIs (34) and is tied for the team lead with four home runs. Cogen is one of three players that have started in all 40 games this season. Chas Hadden is second on the squad with a .295 batting average and is an incredible 17-of-17 on stolen-base attempts this season. The Bruins are hitting .269 as a team this season and .275 during OVC play. Belmont is averaging over 5.5 runs per game this season.
Kyle Brennan leads Belmont with a 2.40 ERA this year out of the bullpen in 21 appearances. Casey Queener has a team-high four wins in 10 starts and leads the Bruins with 64 innings pitched and 74 strikeouts. Logan Bowen leads the team with 24 appearances in 2018 and has four saves. Belmont has a team ERA of 5.74 and an opponent batting average of .288.
Probable Pitching Matchups
Game one: Trevor McMurray (RHP) (4-2, 5.44 ERA) vs. Tyler Vaughn (RHP) (3-5, 4.33 ERA)
Game two: TBA vs. Connor Etheridge (RHP) (2-5, 7.11 ERA)
Game three: Gray Dorsey (RHP) (1-0, 1.93 ERA) vs. Casey Queener (RHP) (4-3, 3.09 ERA)
