SATURDAY GAME 1 LIVE STATS
SATURDAY GAME 2 LIVE STATS
SUNDAY LIVE STATS
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology hits the road for a key Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference weekend baseball series at Manchester University on Saturday and Sunday.
Saturday's doubleheader has been pushed back to 3 p.m. due to rain. Sunday's game is scheduled to begin at noon.
Rose-Hulman leads the HCAC by one game at 15-5 in conference play, just ahead of 14-6 Earlham. Manchester resides third in the league standings at 12-8.
The Rose-Hulman offense features five players currently hitting above the .300 mark. David Burnside leads the team at .411 with 11 doubles, one triple and a team-high six home runs. Zach Trusk is also over the .400 mark at .403 with 12 doubles and one home run.
Conner Shipley ranks third on the team in batting average at .343 with five doubles and one home run. Brian Thomas (.324, 8 2B, 5 HR) and Ryan Stachowski (.322, 6 2B, 1 HR) are also over the .300 mark so far this season.
Other offensive leaders inlcude Davis Robeson (.295, 3 2B, 1 3B), Marcus Wechselberger (.295, 5 2B, 1 3B) and Drew Schnitz (.291, 2 2B, 1 HR).
On the mound, Rose-Hulman has primarily used four starting pitchers this season. Luke Buehler (2-1, 4.17), Ian Grant (2-3, 4.68), Cody Sunderhaus (1-2, 4.74) and Jonathan Banks (3-1, 5.03) have combined to start 30 of the team's 32 games. Clayton Mayfield (3-2, 2.00, 3 saves) has emerged as the closer, with significant relief help from Stone Brogan (2-0, 2.45) and Chuck Alexa (3-4, 6.14).
Manchester stands 15-17 overall and 12-8 in conference play entering this weekend's series. Joe Gallatin has the highest batting average at .358 with seven doubles and five home runs. Chad Schultz is the top power hitter at .326 with 15 doubles and eight home runs. Tailur Szarenski (.307, 6 2B) and Tyler LaFollette (.307, 6 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR) are also over .300, and Eric Knepper has added five home runs and four doubles.
Brandon Eck is the team's top pitcher at 3-3 with a 4.36 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 53.2 innings of work. Taylor Kopplin (1-3, 6.75) has been a consistent starter. Three other pitchers have four starts for the Spartans. Cory Ferguson stands 6-3 with three saves and a 5.44 ERA in 49.2 innings of work to provide depth among starters and relievers.
Manchester narrowly leads Rose-Hulman 20-19 in the series since the Fightin' Engineers joined the HCAC in 2007. The Fightin' Engineers won the last two meetings last season, including a 14-2 to open the 2016 HCAC Tournament at Art Nehf Field.
After this weekend's action, Rose-Hulman will return home to face Franklin College on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the final regular season home game of the season.
