Baseball to Host Final Non-Conference Weekend Series, Starting Friday

March 9, 2017

BOCA RATON, Fla. - With eight days left before Conference USA play starts in earnest, the Florida Atlantic University baseball team hosts their final out-of-conference weekend set, facing Toledo for three beginning Friday at FAU Baseball Stadium.

The Owls (8-4-1) are sitting on a three-game winning streak with their bats firing on all cylinders, scoring at least 11 runs in each victory: 16-2 in the Sunday finale vs. Illinois, 12-6 on the road over Bethune-Cookman Tuesday, and 11-3 Wednesday night at home against Maine.

In the stretch, eight players with at least one start are hitting .300 or better, and 10 Owls with the same criteria have been on base at a clip of .364 or higher. Gary Mattis has been outstanding: 8-for-12 (667), with 11 RBI, an OBP of .714 and a slugging percentage of 1.250.

Not to be outdone, the 14 FAU pitchers that have appeared in the last three games have combined to hold opposing batters to a .250 average and pitched to an ERA of 3.00. They have 26 strikeouts in the 27 innings, giving up less than a hit per inning (26) and walking just seven batters.

Toledo comes into Boca Raton on a seven-game losing streak, and with a 1-11 overall mark. The Rockets' last five games have been in the Sunshine State; they were swept in Tampa by USF, and fell in two neutral-site games on Tuesday and Wednesday in Port Charlotte, to Boston College (6-5) and Northeastern (9-2), respectively.

For the fourth straight weekend, FAU will feature the same three-man rotation. Here are the probable starting pitching matchups for the Owls and Rockets:

Friday, 6:30 p.m. - RHP Alex House (1-1, 7.36) vs. LHP Steven Calhoun (0-0, 2.25)
Saturday, 4 p.m. - LHP Jake Miednik (2-1, 3.86) vs. LHP Ross Achter (1-2, 3.21)
Sunday, Noon - LHP Nick Swan (1-0, 6.00) vs. RHP Sam Shutes (0-3, 5.17)

Toledo has just one batter over the .300 mark on the season, Malave Bettinger, batting .318 (7-for-22) in six starts, and as a squad, they've been held to a .203 average. The top power hitter for the Rockets thus far has been Ross Adolph, with three home runs and six RBI, while Dalton Bollinger leads the squad with eight runs knocked in.

The only other time these two teams met was in a three-game set four years ago in Boca Raton, a series the Owls took, 2-1. On March 8, 2013, it was a 4-3 FAU win; Toledo took the middle game the following day, 6-1; and the Owls were victorious in the clincher, 7-5 on March 10.

For tickets to the weekend series, call 1-866-FAU-OWLS or visit https://oss.ticketmaster.com/aps/fau/EN/link/buy/browse?i%5B0%5D=251.

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