Carrollton, GA - The University of West Georgia Wolves baseball team is on a quite a run, and they look to ride that momentum into a three-game Gulf South Conference baseball series this weekend at West Alabama. The Wolves (32-10, 18-9 GSC) enter the contest on a fifteen game winning streak and sitting at fifth in the conference standings. The Tigers (31-11, 19-8 GSC) are on a five-game win streak and are second in the conference standings.
Wolves in Midweek
After an impressive sweep of the Valdosta State Blazers last weekend UWG stayed hot, taking a pair of midweek victories on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Tuesday they defeated the Young Harris Mountain Lions 18-7 on the road, and followed that victory with a 9-5 win over the Miles Golden Bears at home.
The Wolves scored 18 runs on 12 hits in the win on Tuesday.
Tyler Hutch was outstanding as he went 3-4 with double, a homerun, two runs scored, and six RBI.
Dalton Rogers was also impressive as he was 2-5 with four runs scored, five RBI, and a grand slam. All but one UWG starter had a hit in the game with Artemis Kadhodaian joining Hutch and Rodgers with multiple hits.
Turner Edwards picked up the win, throwing 1.2 innings and giving up two runs and three hits.
Mitchell Mannino continued to be a workhorse out of the UWG bullpen as the junior threw 2.1 innings, giving up one hit and striking out four. That gave Mannino hs fourth save of the season.
Wednesday's matchup was closer as the Wolves came from behind for the 9-5 victory.
Artemis Kadkhodaian led the offense that night with two hits and three RBI.
Garrett Hayes also had two hits, while he added two RBI and three runs scored. Hayes also belted his fifth homerun. Freshman
Cade Marlowe also contributed two hits.
TJ Watson got the win as he pitched 5.1 innings, giving up only one run and striking out four.
Joe Vonderschmidt and
Tyler Gunnin combined for two hitless innings of relief and three strikeouts.
During the Streak
The Wolves have had some impressive numbers during their current fifteen game win streak. As a team, West Georgia is hitting .345 while opponents are hitting a combined .272.
Cade Marlowe is leading the team with a .426 BA over that span, while
Garrett Hayes leads the team with 27 RBI. West Georgia has outscored opponents 151-57 over the streak.
The pitching has also been impressive for the Wolves during the streak, as UWG has a team ERA of 3.51 while opponent's ERA is 10.66.
Matthew Norton is 3-0 with a 0.90 ERA in three starts.
Brandon Goldsmith is also 3-0 and
Josh Morgan is 2-0.
Mitchell Mannino has thrown 12.0 innings over the fifteen-game span, giving up no earned runs while striking out sixteen.
West Alabama at a Glance
The Tigers are hitting .302 as a team so far this season. UWA has eight players hitting above .300, led by Mitch Holgate who has a .372 BA. He also leads the team with eleven homeruns and 36 RBI. The Tigers are second in the GSC with a team ERA of 3.12. Evan Anderson is 7-1 on the year with a 2.37 ERA. That puts him at second in the conference in ERA. Gary Rundles is in his fifteenth season as the UWA head coach.
When and Where
Game one is set for Saturday at 2:00 p.m. EST at Tartt Field in Livingston, Ala. Game two will take place approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of game one. Game three will take place Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EST. Live stats, audio, and video links are available at uwgsports.com. Live updates will be available via @UWGAthletics on Twitter.
