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Baseball Travels to UCF on Tuesday
4/16/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 16, 2012
Boca Raton, FL - Two league-leading teams will square off in Orlando on Tuesday night, April 17, when the Florida Atlantic University baseball team looks to even its season series with nationally ranked UCF in a non-conference game. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Jay Bergman Field.
FAU stands 24-13 on the season and leads the Sun Belt Conference (SBC) with a 12-3 record following last weekend's series victory at the University of Louisiana-Monroe, The team enjoys a two-game edge over Arkansas State University in the standings at the halfway point in league campaign. The Owls had been ranked by Collegiate Baseball the past two weeks, reaching as high as 28th in the nation.
Meanwhile, the Knights enter the game ranked 12th by Collegiate Baseball and are tied for first place in Conference USA with a 9-3 record. Overall, the team has a 30-8 mark for the season.
Florida Atlantic is 10-5 on the road this season, including a 7-2 mark in SBC action. The seven league road wins already surpass last year's road conference total.
Individually, senior infielder Mike Albaladejoleads a balanced offensive attack with a .361 batting average and 31 runs scored. He also is tops on the team with nine doubles from the lead-off spot in the batting order.
Senior outfielder Alex Hudakhad a two-hit game against ULM on April 15 to improve his average to .333 on the season. The multiple-hit performance was his first since returning to the lineup since suffering an ankle injury earlier this season.
Junior outfielder Corey Keller is tied for team-high honors with six home runs and has posted a .324 batting average. Junior first baseman Mark Nelsonhas also connected on six home runs and ranks fifth in the SBC with 34 runs batted in. Nelson has driven in a run in seven of his last eight games.
Junior third baseman Kyle Newtonrounds out the .300 hitters with a .322 batting average and five home runs. Newton has also recorded 26 RBIs.
In the pitching department, senior right hander Ryan Gartonanchors the staff with a 7-2 record and a 2.86 earned run average. He is tied for the conference lead with seven victories.
Freshman Austin Gomberhas rounded out the weekend starting rotation with a 3-1 record and a solid 3.15 ERA. The left hander has recorded 43 strikeouts on the season.
In the bullpen, junior R.J. Alvarez has recorded seven saves and has tallied 36 strikeouts in 27.2 innings. He has a 3-0 record and a dazzling 0.65 ERA. Another vital pitching option for Head Coach John McCormack has been senior left hander Ahmed Garcia, who has posted two saves and a 2-0 record on the season. UCF is also coming off winning a road conference series, winning the last two games at Southern Mississippi. The team is led by D.J. Hicks with 10 home runs and 54 runs batted in. The first baseman also is hitting a solid .328 at the plate. Alex Freidrich and Chris Taladay are tied for team-high honors with identical .354 batting averages. Friedrich has legged out 15 doubles this season. UCF has six players hitting .300 or better. The Knights pitching staff has compiled a 2.83 earned run average on the season.
Friedrich's 3-for-5, four RBI performance help lead UCF to an 11-3 victory over FAU in Boca Raton on March 27. Five batters collected multiple-hit games, while senior Ray Hanson picked up the pitching victory after going two innings while operating on a limited pitch count.
FAU will return home this weekend for a showdown with second-place Arkansas State. The series begins on Friday, April 20, at 6:30 p.m. and the FAU Stadium.
Live audio and statistics of all FAU games can be found at www.fausports.com. Tickets for any home game can be purchased through the FAU Ticket Office at 1-866-FAU-OWLS.
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