LAKE CHARLES- The McNeese Cowboys (16-16, 3-6) will return home Thursday night as they continue SLC play with a three-game set against Incarnate Word (15-14, 5-4).
The Rundown
Opponent: Incarnate Word Cardinals
Date: April 14-16
Site: Lake Charles, Louisiana | Joe Miller Ballpark
Time: 6 p.m./ 6 p.m./ 1 p.m.
Probable Pitching Matchups:
TBA
Series History:
McNeese and UIW are meeting for the 19th time overall, McNeese leads the series 14-4.
Last Time Out:
The Pokes' scheduled game this past Tuesday at ULL was canceled due to weather. Before that, the Cowboys dropped the series over the weekend at New Orleans after defeating Prairie View last Wednesday. Braden Duhon hit .474 last week with a triple and four runs scored. Kade Hunter (.375) and Brad Burckel (.333) also had productive weeks. Hunter homered in game one against UNO while driving in six on the week and Burckel homered in game two and drove in three. Duhon was an honorable mention for Southland Conference Hitter of the Week.
About McNeese:
Kade Hunter (.363), Brad Burckel (.361) Braden Duhon (.360), and Payton Harden (.333) are the Cowboys leading hitters. Kade Morris and Burckel are co-leading the team with five homers. Burckel has also driven in a team-high 23 RBI with Julian Gonzales right behind him with 21. Josh Leslie has also added 15 RBI in his first 12 games of the season.
Burckel is second in the Southland Conference with 44 hits and ranks second with an OPS of 1.029.
On The Run:
The Cowboys have stolen the sixth-most bases in the nation with 71. Payton Harden (14), Brad Burckel (12), Julian Gonzales (11), and Reid Bourque (11) lead the team in that department. The Pokes have also tripled 16 times this season which is tied for the third-highest total in the country.
Closing Time:
Cameron Foster's eight saves are tied for the fourth-most in College Baseball. He's 1-1 with a 1.23 ERA and 42 strikeouts in 29.1 innings.
About UIW:
Knotted in a four-way tie for second place, Incarnate Word swept Northwestern State at home over the weekend before dropping a midweek game against Tarleton State. The Cardinals are hitting .280 as a team with Roberto Gonzalez (.350) and Ridge Rogers (.340) leading the way. Gonzalez brings a 12-game hit streak to Lake Charles and has driven in a team-high 19 runs. Reid Hensley has added a team-leading four home runs in nine games.
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