Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Baseball Looks to Rebound on the Road against Lipscomb
4/13/2005 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 13, 2005
Boca Raton, FL - Coming off a disappointing A-Sun series loss to Belmont at home over the past weekend, Florida Atlantic University's baseball team now takes to the road to face fellow A-Sun Conference rival Lipscomb University in a three-game conference series on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
FAU (19-13, 7-8) and Lipscomb have squared off just three times, with all three meetings coming last season in Atlantic Sun Conference play. FAU holds a 2-1 series edge, having won 8-8 (4/16) and 17-2 (4/17) last season to win the season series. Lipscomb won the most recent contest, however, 5-1 on April 17, 2004.
Lipscomb currently stands 17-17 with a 4-8 record in the A-Sun, having most recently defeated Tennessee Tech April 12 in Nashville. The team is tied for ninth in the A-Sun standings after losing two of three against Central Florida last weekend.
The Bisons are led by Todd Brewer's .364 batting average, Nathan Sensing's four home runs, .508 slugging percentage and 14 stolen bases, and Ryan Mitchell's 22 RBI and .464 on-base percentage.
Their starting rotation is in doubt going into the weekend, as regular starter Alan Tungate is suffering from an elbow injury and may be out for the entire year. Zach Duncan will likely be a Day 1 or Day 2 starter. He holds a 4-2 record with a 3.19 ERA in 53.2 innings of work. The other probable starters are Seth Kuwik, who holds an impressive 1.38 ERA and 5-2 record in 39 innings of work, and Brett McCullough, who is coming off 6.1 innings of work in an earned win over Tennessee Tech.
Sophomore Mike McBryde leads the FAU offense with a .351 batting average and 34 runs scored. His two home runs vs. Belmont lifted him into a first-place tie for the team lead with three. Fellow sophomore Robbie Widlansky is the team leader in RBI with 24, and he also joined freshman Mike McKenna and McBryde as home run leaders with three in one game against FIU. McKenna is first on the team in slugging percentage (.511) and also recently carried a 20-game hitting streak.
Probable starting pitchers for FAU this weekend are Mickey Storey, Brandon Kloess, and McBryde. Storey leads the team with a 1.05 ERA and 38 strikeouts, and he holds a 3-1 record in 15 appearances. Kloess is 4-1 with three starts under his belt and has a 4.23 ERA. McBryde has seen just 13.2 innings of work at pitcher, but owns a 1-0 record, 0.00 ERA, and 23 strikeouts.
Good weather is expected in Nashville, with temperatures predicted to reach the high 70's.
