Tuesday, April 4
LOUISVILLE, KY
6:00 PM
University of Louisville
vs
KENTUCKY
Colin Lyman scored the deciding run in Louisville's walk-off win against UK last season.
Photo by: Mike DeZarn
No. 2 Louisville Hosts No. 8 Kentucky in Battle of the Bluegrass
April 03, 2017 | Baseball
First pitch scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m., ET at Jim Patterson Stadium
| GAME DAY INFORMATION #2 Louisville vs. #8 Kentucky Location: Louisville, Ky. Venue: Jim Patterson Stadium (4,000) Twitter Updates: @UofLBaseball Game Notes: Louisville | Kentucky | Media Center Tuesday, April 4 | 6:00 p.m. ET | Live Stats TV: ACC Network Extra | Radio: 93.9 The Ville LOU: TBD UK: TBD |
ABOUT THE LOUISVILLE CARDINALS
The Cardinals return home after earning a series win at No. 16 Virginia last weekend in Charlottesville. Louisville, which set a record for the best start to a season in school history with 19 straight wins, has won each of its six weekend series this season, including four straight against ACC opponents.
After entering 2017 ranked in the top 12 in all six major preseason polls, the Cardinals moved to No. 1 in the nation for the first time school history on March 13 landing in the top position four national polls -- Baseball America Top 25, NCBWA Top 30, Perfect Game Top 25 and USA Today Sports coaches poll. After holding a No. 1 ranking for two weeks, Louisville has landed in the No. 2 position in each of the last two weeks.
The Cardinals are paced by junior Brendan McKay, the two-time John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year. McKay is eighth in the nation in on-base percentage at .532 and 16th in batting average at .417 to go along with five home runs and 20 RBI. The two-time ACC Pitcher of the Week also has a 4-1 record with a 1.18 ERA and 57 strikeouts in six Friday starts on the mound. McKay has a 25-8 career record with a 1.92 ERA and 302 strikeouts as a pitcher to go with a .337 career batting average in 144 starts as a hitter.
As a team, the Cardinals are second in the nation in shutouts, third in hits allowed per 9 IP, fifth in ERA, eighth in WHIP, 13th in strikeouts per 9 IP, 13th in on-base percentage, 14th in stolen bases, 18th in scoring, 21st in batting average and 25th in slugging percentage.
ACC ATLANTIC DIVISION RACE
Through four weeks of ACC action, the reigning back-to-back ACC Atlantic Division champions are atop the standings with a 10-2 conference mark and the Cardinals are matched only by No. 4 Clemson with the same league record. No. 17 Wake Forest, which visits Jim Patterson Stadium for a three-game series this weekend, is two games behind Louisville at 8-4, while Florida State is four games back at 6-6.
ABOUT THE KENTUCKY WILDCATS
Kentucky enters the week at 21-8 overall and 7-2 in the SEC after earning a series win at home against Vanderbilt last weekend. The Wildcats have won six of their last seven games and have won all three SEC series under first year head coach Nick Mingione. The pitching coach for the Wildcats is UofL alumnus Jim Belanger, who pitched for the Cardinals in 2007 and 2008. Last season, UK was 32-25 overall and fourth in the SEC East with a 15-15 conference record.
SERIES HISTORY
Louisville is 40-61-1 all-time against Kentucky in a series dating back to 1925. The Cardinals have won five straight against the Wildcats, including a sweep of the regular season series in each of the last two years and three straight wins at Patterson Stadium. Last season, the Cardinals earned a 9-6 win in Lexington and a 7-6 win in Louisville, their second straight walk-off win at home against UK.
TEAM NOTES AND TRENDS
• Louisville entered the weekend as one of just two teams in the nation (St. John's is the other) ranked in the top 21 in the NCAA in both ERA (fifth) and batting average (21st).
• The Cardinals have won 36 straight regular season home games at Jim Patterson Stadium with the most recent regular season loss coming to No. 9 Virginia on March 25, 2016.
• UofL has also won 30 straight regular season weekend series at home dating back to 2013.
• A season after setting a school record for highest fielding percentage (.978), Louisville has maintained a similar pace in 2017 with 22 errors in 27 games for a .978 fielding percentage.
• The Cardinals have allowed two or fewer earned runs in 17 of 27 games this season after accomplishing the feat in 36 of 64 games last season. They allowed two or fewer earned runs in 36 of 65 games in 2015, 40 of 67 games in 2014 and 36 of 65 games in 2013.
• Louisville has finished with 10 or more hits in 17 of 27 games this season.
• In 12 ACC games, the Cardinals pitching staff has a 2.61 ERA with 105 strikeouts in 107.0 innings of work.
• The UofL bullpen has a 2.05 ERA and 13-0 record with 111 strikeouts in 114.0 innings pitched while opponents are hitting just .181 overall.
• Louisville is 49-of-56 on stolen base attempts this season (14th in NCAA) after finishing 101-of-126 in 2016 (12th nationally). The Cardinals were fourth nationally with 127 stolen bases in 2015, second in the nation in 2014 with 133 and second in 2013 with 150.
• The Cardinals ended last season second in the nation in hits allowed per nine innings, third in hits, third in sacrifice flies, third in shutouts, fifth in ERA, sixth in batting average, sixth in doubles, sixth in slugging percentage, sixth in WHIP, ninth in runs scored, 12th in stolen bases, 15th in fielding percentage, 15th in on-base percentage, 15th in strikeouts per nine innings, 19th in home runs, 20th in scoring, 21st in strikeout-to-walk ratio, 25th in hit by pitch and 26th in triples.
• While at the helm in Louisville, McDonnell has guided the Cardinals to three College World Series berths, six NCAA Super Regional appearances, nine NCAA Regional bids, seven regular season conference championships, two conference tournament titles and 29 All-Americans.
PLAYER NOTES AND TRENDS
• Brendan McKay: Recorded career-high 15 strikeouts in March 10 win over Pittsburgh and has finished with eight or more strikeouts 22 times in collegiate career.
• Two-way standout is eighth in the NCAA in on-base percentage, 16th in batting average, 18th in the nation among pitchers in strikeouts and 23rd in ERA.
• In 20 pitching starts at Jim Patterson Stadium, McKay is 18-1 with a 1.41 ERA (21 earned runs in 134.0 IP) and 169 strikeouts.
• In 25 career appearances on the mound at home (including 20 starts), McKay is 19-1 with four saves, a 1.35 ERA (21 earned runs in 140.0 IP) and 176 strikeouts.
• Has reached base in 24 of 27 games played in 2017 while delivering 13 multi-hit outings.
• Kade McClure: Has 16-2 career record... Won 12 of 13 starts last season and was tied for fifth nationally in victories... Was also in the top 10 in the nation in WHIP and hits allowed per 9 IP while earning All-America honors last season.
• Nick Bennett: Has won three of five career collegiate starts... Ranks fourth in the ACC in ERA and third in WHIP... Allowed one hit and registered seven strikeouts while facing the minimum of 18 batters for first career victory in first ever start against Eastern Michigan on March 3.
• Lincoln Henzman: Ranks 13th nationally with seven save... Opened 2017 with 13.1 consecutive innings of scoreless relief... Has 17 strikeouts with just three walks in 17.2 innings pitched.
• Logan Taylor: 5-for-16 with five walks, two HBPs, six stolen bases and eight runs scored in first inning this season (all as leadoff hitter)... 16th in NCAA with 14 stolen bases... Has reached base safely in 22 of 23 starts this season... Played in 201 career games with 104 starts.
• Colby Fitch: Named to 2017 Johnny Bench Award Watch List... Second on team with 11 multi-hit games this season... Has started 20 of 17 games at catcher while starting other seven games at designated hitter... Hit four of five home runs, 22 of 25 RBI in his 27 starts last season.
• Devin Hairston: 31 straight games without an error (dating back to 2016)... Career-best five RBI in three-hit game vs. Fort Wayne on March 8... Leads team with 30 RBI and eight multi-RBI games... Started all 64 games in 2016 earning All-America and All-ACC honors.
• Drew Ellis: Has reached base safely in 25 of 27 games... Leads team with eight doubles to go with five home runs... Hit first career grand slam on March 1 against Morehead State... Had 30 starts last season in left field, one at third and one at second base.
• Josh Stowers: Has started 17 straight games and hit safely in 14 of those... Had two-hit outing and one RBI in first career start on Feb. 18 against No. 22 Maryland.
• Colin Lyman: Hit first career home run and had career-best three hits on March 1 against Morehead State... Had 47 starts and 60 games played last season... 184 career appearances.
• Devin Mann: Homered in final two games of NC State series... Has reached base safely in 20 of 26 games this season... Hit .307 with eight doubles, 16 RBI and 13 runs in 19 starts last season.
LOUISVILLE IN NATIONAL POLLS EVERY WEEK SINCE BEGINNING OF 2012
Louisville, which surpassed its previous high national ranking of No. 2 (in 2016) with the No. 1 ranking on March 13 and March 20, has enjoyed a historic run by remaining in at least one major national poll every week since the release of the 2012 preseason rankings -- the longest such span in school history. Ranked in the top 12 in all six major preseason polls for 2017, the Cardinals have received a preseason top 10 ranking in five straight seasons (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017) and have earned a preseason national ranking in 10 straight seasons (2008-2017) overall.
FEELING AT HOME INSIDE JIM PATTERSON STADIUM
Since opening the gates at Jim Patterson Stadium in 2005, the Cardinals have won more than 77 percent of their games in the ballpark posting a 329-93 record (.779 winning percentage), including an impressive 36-3 mark during the 2016 season at the corner of Third and Central.
MCKAY EARNS BACK-TO-BACK ACC PITCHER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Brendan McKay was named ACC Pitcher of the Week in back-to-back weeks on March 13 and March 20. The first of the two honors came after McKay had a career-high 15 strikeouts while allowing only two hits in seven shutout innings against Pitt on March 10. The 15 strikeouts were two better than McKay's previous high of 13 and the outing marked the 20th time he has finished with eight or more strikeouts in a single game.
The second Pitcher of the Week honor came after McKay finished with 12 strikeouts and scattered five singles with one walk in seven shutout innings to move to 4-0 on the season in a win over Boston College. The Darlington, Pennsylvania native anchored the sixth shutout of the season for the No. 1 Cardinals.
NCBWA NAMES MCKAY NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE MONTH FOR FEBRUARY
Brendan McKay was named National Player of the Month for February by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. McKay had a prolific month, both at the plate and on the mound. In seven games, McKay hit .619 (13-for-21) with a double, three homers and 11 RBI. He had six walks, was hit by two pitches and struck out just once. In two Friday starts, McKay posted wins and a 0.82 ERA in 11 innings. He allowed only six hits and four walks, striking out 14.
SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM CONTINUES FOR THE CARDINALS
As the Louisville baseball team was making significant progress on the field during its 2016 fall workouts, the Cardinals also maintained their impressive work in the classroom registering a cumulative team GPA of 3.0 or better for the 11th consecutive semester. The notable stretch of academic success has covered five-and-a-half years overall since starting with fall semester in 2011.
The span of 11 straight semesters with a team GPA of 3.0 or better includes the 2013 and 2014 seasons, which culminated with back-to-back appearances at the College World Series. In each of those trips to Omaha, the Cardinals received the CWS Academic Award for having the highest team GPA of the eight programs advancing to the pinnacle of collegiate baseball.
FOLLOWING THE CARDINALS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter (@UofLBaseball) at http://twitter.com/uoflbaseball and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ulbaseball.
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