University of Houston Athletics
Baseball Opening Day Set For Friday
2/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 18, 2010
HOUSTON - The University of Houston baseball team begins its 2010 campaign Friday night at 6:30 p.m. against Texas State at Cougar Field. Friday's contest kicks off a three-game series against the Bobcats that continues at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday and concludes at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Fans can hear all three of this weekend's games live on UHCougars.com with former UH letterwinner Pat Cauley calling all the action. Livestats will also be available via the internet by clicking on the Gametracker link on the baseball schedule page.
The first 250 fans that arrive for Friday's game will receive a Pulse of the Pride bracelet and all students in attendance will receive five Cougar Cards. Pulse of the Pride t-shirts will be available all weekend for $10 and all fans in attendance this weekend will receive the official 2010 Houston Baseball poster.
Single game tickets are still on sale beginning at $8 for general admission. A season ticket package for all 27 home games is also still available for $165. Tickets can be purchased at the Houston Athletics Ticket Office in the Athletics/Alumni Center or on the phone at 713-GO-COOGS (462-6647) Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or online at www.UHCougars.com.
The gates and the ticket booth open one hour prior to the start of the game.
When the Cougars take to the field on Friday, for the first time in three years, someone other than former letterwinner Wes Musick will be on the mound. Sophomore Michael Goodnight has been tabbed as the Opening Day starter for the Cougars. The Houston native earned 13 starts in his freshman campaign with a 5-5 record. He allowed 68 hits and struck out 58 batters en route to earning a spot on the Conference USA All-Freshman Team.
Musick was selected in the ninth round of the MLB Draft following his junior season in 2009.
Prior to the start of the season, junior shortstop Blake Kelso was named to the Preseason All-C-USA Second Team and junior pitcher Chase Dempsay was one of 40 players selected to the preseason watch list for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year award.
Kelso returns for a third season after leading the Cougars with a .335 batting average in 2009. Junior Caleb Ramsey and senior Zak Presley also look to lead UH after posting strong seasons at the plate and as Cougar outfielders. Ramsey finished second on the team with a .332 average with 11 doubles, two triples and four homeruns. Presley added a .301 average, 28 RBIs and a team-high 17 stolen bases.
Friday's opener marks the beginning of Houston's 64th season of intercollegiate baseball. UH has enjoyed great success in season openers, posting an all-time record of 38-25 (.603) and reeling off 13 straight victories from 1975-1987.
The Cougars will meet Texas State for the 35th time in program history on Friday. Houston has won the last four meetings to post a 27-7 overall record on the series history. The last meeting between these two programs was in San Marcos, Texas on April 9, 2008. UH came out on top, 15-9.
LOOKING AHEAD
Following the series against Texas State, Houston will play a series against Santa Clara at Cougar Field on Feb. 26-28. The two weekend series to end the month on February will be the final home action for UH until March 24. The Cougars will play a mid-week contest at Rice before the Houston College Classic and then embark on an 11-day trip to the West Coast. The road trip will end with a mid-week match-up with Stephen F. Austin on March 23.
