University of Houston Athletics
Preview: Baseball Opens Conference Play at ECU
3/30/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
| #15 HOUSTON (16-8) at #19 EAST CAROLINA (17-8) | |
| WEEKEND BREAKDOWN |
| LOCATION | Greenville, N.C. |
| GAMEDAY CENTRAL | GAMEDAY CENTRAL |
| LISTEN LIVE | UHCougars.com/baseradio |
| WATCH LIVE | ECUPirates.com (Fri/Sun) | ADN (Sat) |
| GAMETRACKER | | | |
| SERIES HISTORY | Houston and ECU have met 48 previous times. |
| SERIES RECORD | ECU leads 24-23-1 all-time. |
| GAME NOTES | Game Notes |
HOUSTON â€" No. 15 Houston Baseball will open American Athletic Conference play this weekend when it travels to Greenville, N.C. to take on No. 19 East Carolina in a three-game series, beginning Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT.
The series between the Cougars and Pirates will continue at 3 p.m. CT Saturday and wrap at 10 a.m. CT Sunday. Saturday's game will air on the American Digital Network: http://theamerican.org/watch/
FOLLOW ALONG
Listen Live: UHCougars.com/baseradio
Watch Live: Friday and Sunday (ECUPirates.com) // Saturday (http://theamerican.org/watch/)
ON DECK
Following Houston's weekend series on the road at East Carolina, the Cougars will travel to Lake Charles, La. for a 6 p.m. matchup vs. McNeese State before returning home to host UCF in its conference home opener at Darryl & Lori Schroeder Park, April 8-10.
HITS ON HOUSTON
The Cougars, ranked at No. 15, have been riding the efforts of their pithing staff, who continues to rank among the nation's Top 10 in several categories, including leading the nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio and walks allowed per nine innings.
The Cougars are coming off a tough 7-2 midweek loss to No. 1 Texas A&M at home, but have won every series thus far in 2016 including back-to-back weekend sweeps the last two weekends.
Houston's pitching staff owns a 2.24 ERA and has eight saves in 24 games. The Cougars have struck out 217 and walked just 45 in 213.0 innings, while holding opponents to a .206 average.
Leading the pitching staff is sophomore Seth Romero, who is 4-0 with a 0.58 ERA. In 31.0 innings, he has struck out 39 and has one complete game and one combined shutout in five appearances and four starts.
Junior Andrew Lantrip holds the nation's best strikeout-to-walk ratio and is 4-2 with a 1.69 ERA in six starts. He has fanned 44 in 42.2 innings, while walking just one.
Freshman Mitch Ullom is coming off back-to-back impressive starts and is 3-1 with a 2.59 ERA in five appearances and four starts.
Out of the bullpen, Houston has relied heavily on the work of junior Nick Hernandez, who owns the team-lead with five saves in 10 appearances. Freshmen Tanner Lawson and Trey Cumbie and senior Bubba Maxwell have each made seven appearances.
Offensively, Houston is hitting .276 as a team and is slugging .413 with 20 home runs, 37 doubles and seven triples. The team is 33-of-41 on the base paths, led by sophomore Zac Taylor with nine.
Freshman Joe Davis paces the conference and team with a solid .396 average with 38 hits and 31 â€" sparked by six home runs.
Sophomore Connor Wong follows with a .356 average and a team-high 23 runs from the leadoff position, while senior Michael Pyeatt is hitting .338 and comes into Friday riding a 16-game hit streak.
ABOUT EAST CAROLINA
East Carolina is ranked as high as No. 19 in the nation and will open American Athletic Conference play with a 17-8 overall record. The Pirates are coming off 9-6 midweek win over UNC-Wilmington and have won four of the last five games.
The Pirates open conference play having been picked to finish third, but return after capturing the American Athletic Conference Championship title in a win over the Cougars last season.
East Carolina is hitting .311 as a team and slugging .431 with 13 home runs, 49 doubles and six triples. The Pirates are 38-of-45 on the base paths and are fielding .967 with 33 errors.
Luke Bolka leads the offense with a .448 average, while Parker Lamm is hitting .364.
On the pitching side, the Pirates own a 3.46 ERA and have seven saves, two shutouts and have fanned 177 hitters, while walking just 65 in 224.0 innings. Opponents area hitting .254 against the staff.
East Carolina will throw LHP Evan Kruczynski on Friday vs. the Cougars. He enters the series with a 3-0 record and a 1.98 ERA in six starts. In 41.0 innings, he has fanned 29 and walked eight.
Saturday starter RHP Jimmy Boyd owns a 2.41 ERA and is 3-1 in seven appearances and five starts this season. He has fanned 22 in 37.1 innings, while walking eight.
The Pirates will throw LHP Jacob Wolfe on Sunday, who is 3-2 with a 2.06 ERA in seven starts. He has fanned 25 in 39.1 innings, while walking nine.
Out of the bullpen, East Carolina turns to RHP Joe Ingle, who has five saves and a 3-2 record in 11 appearances, while holding a 2.75 ERA.
PROBABLE ROTATION
Friday, April 1
Houston: RHP Andrew Lantrip (1.69 ERA, 4-2)
East Carolina: LHP Evan Kruczynski (1.98 ERA, 3-0)
Saturday, April 2
Houston: LHP Seth Romero (0.58 ERA, 4-0)
East Carolina: RHP Jimmy Boyd (2.41 ERA, 3-1)
Sunday, April 3
Houston: TBA
East Carolina: LHP Jacob Wolfe (2.06 ERA, 3-2)
SERIES HISTORY
Houston and East Carolina have met 48 previous times with the Pirates edging the all-time series, 24-23-1, dating back to Game 1 in 2002.
East Carolina won the last meeting between the two teams in the American Athletic Conference Championship (May 24, 2015) in Clearwater, Fla. â€" winning 9-1, but Houston won the 2015 regular-season series between the two teams at previously-Cougar Field.
The last time the two teams met in Greenville, N.C. came in 2012 with East Carolina winning the series, 2-0-1.
AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE NOTES
Houston will enter American Athletic Conference ranked as high as No. 15 with East Carolina ranked as high as No. 19. The Cougars come into play as the league favorite in the preseason coaches' poll, while the Pirates were picked to finish third behind Tulane.
JOIN THE DUGOUT CLUB
Nationally-ranked Houston Baseball would like to encourage those wishing to support the efforts and success of the baseball student-athletes to consider joining the Dugout Club for as low as $25 a month or $300 annually.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
LEVELS
PINCH HITTER
For a minimum monthly installment of $25 or a minimum one-time gift of $300, supporters can take advantage of the Pinch Hitter level, which will guarantee an invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball team apparel.
DIAMOND
For a minimum monthly installment of $100 or a minimum one-time gift of $1,000, supporters can take advantage of the Diamond level, which will guarantee batting practice passes for two to any home game, invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball apparel.
**Cougar Pride points will be applied accordingly.
For more information on joining the Dugout Club, please contact the Houston Baseball office at (713) 743-9396.
For more information regarding Cougar Pride, please call (713) 743-GOUH
BUY SEASON/ SINGLE-GAME / GROUP TICKETS
Houston Baseball has 15 remaining home games at Darryl & Lori Schroeder Park and fans can purchase season tickets for as low as $99 online by visiting UHCougars.com/tickets and following the appropriate links or by clicking here.
To purchase tickets in person, fans can visit the Athletics Ticket Stadium Office located on the northeast corner of TDECU Stadium, just outside of Gate 1 off Cullen Boulevard. Parking is available in the TDECU Stadium parking garage with the first 30 minutes free of charge. Regular business hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m., to 5:30 p.m.
Houston Baseball will offer variable pricing on its single-game tickets and group rates.
As noted in the table above, variable pricing occurs. For weekday (Tuesday/Wednesday) games, prices range from $5-$7 depending on the choice of seating.
Weekend ((Thursday) Friday-Sunday) online pricing will range from $6-$8 per game.
GROUP RATES
Group rates are also available (as noted in the table). Weekday (Tuesday/Wednesday) and Weekend ((Thursday) Friday-Sunday) pricing occurs. Groups of 10-24 are set at $4-$5 per person, while groups of 25+ are $3-$4 per person.
All UH main campus students are admitted FREE to regular-season baseball home games with a valid student ID.
STAY CONNECTED
Stay up to date with all Houston Baseball news and highlights by following us on Twitter @UHCougarBB or on Facebook at /HoustonCougarBaseball. Fans can also follow head coach Todd Whitting @toddwhitting on Twitter.
