HARTSVILLE, S.C. – With both teams looking to snap four-game skids, the Anderson baseball team is set for a three-game South Atlantic Conference weekend series at Coker. First-pitch for Friday afternoon's series opener at the Cobras' Tom J. New Field is scheduled for 3 p.m.
The series is scheduled to conclude with a Saturday afternoon doubleheader, with a 1 p.m. first-pitch.
WHO: Anderson Trojans (9-12, 0-3 SAC) vs. Coker Cobras (9-12, 2-4 SAC)
WHERE: Tom J. New Field; Hartsville, S.C.
WHEN: Friday, 3 p.m. / Saturday, 1 p.m. (DH)
COVERAGE
Live Stats: AUTROJANS.COM
Live Video: AUTROJANS.COM
THE TROJANS
AU is coming off a 20-17 marathon midweek setback at Newberry last Tuesday night and is seeking its first conference win of the season. The Trojans have suffered six one-run losses and another setback was by just a pair of runs.
The Trojans' 17-run outburst against Newberry marked their highest scoring output since defeating Augusta, 23-10, last April.
Grad student Nathan Sanders and senior Nathan Ledford each own a pair of wins, with Ledford earning both of his wins in relief and Sanders claiming AU's lone complete-game outing so far. Junior Jonathan Duffie and senior Jackson Herring have each earned a save through the early going.
Senior catcher Carlos Hernandez leads the team with 21 RBI and has boosted his batting average 58 points over the last four games after notching three hits and driving in five runs against Lenoir-Rhyne last Sunday afternoon. Sophomore Brandon Gibbs, who has seen action in nine games, leads the team with a .611 slugging percentage and has a pair of triples among his seven hits on the season. The Columbia native is a perfect 5-for-5 in stolen base attempts this season.
Third baseman Brayden Owens saw his team-high 10-game hitting streak broken in the series opener against the Bears, but bounced back with a vengeance and owns six hits over the last three games. Senior Justin Fox owns a .293 batting average and is 8-for-9 in stolen bases. Freshman outfielder Braeden Harrison has seen action in seven games over the last three weeks and has lifted his batting average 69 points to .302 over that time span on the strength of a six-game hitting streak. Junior infielder JC LeGrand has reached base safely in 15 consecutive games, while drawing a dozen walks over the last nine games.
SCOUTING THE COBRAS
The Cobras were tabbed to finish 10th in the SAC Preseason Coaches' Poll, after finishing last season with an overall 13-35 record, including an 8-16 mark in the league and finishing 10th in the conference standings, alongside the Trojans.
The Cobras have lost four straight one-run decisions after defeating national-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne, 9-7, at home eight days ago. Tusculum swept Coker last weekend in Greeneville, then the Cobras suffered their fourth straight one-run loss with a 4-3 setback to USC Aiken, Wednesday afternoon.
Behind junior outfielder Donavan Frayer's 14 stolen bases, infielder Jaylen Mack's 12 swipes and junior Cameron Ferrell's eight stolen bases, Coker is second in the league with 63 total stolen bases on the season, behind just Newberry's league-leading 76 stolen bases.
THE SERIES vs. COKER
Anderson leads the overall series with the Cobras, 43-32, with the first meeting occurring in 1998. The Trojans swept last season's regular-season series at Anderson Memorial Stadium and have won six of the last 10 matchups.
UP NEXT
The Trojans will step of out conference play for a midweek matchup against Conference Carolinas'-foe Emmanuel. AU will be looking to avenge an earlier, 5-4, setback to the Lions, suffered last month.
First-pitch is set for 5 p.m. at Anderson Memorial Stadium.
