BEAUMONT, Texas — The homestand continues with a midweek contest against the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff on Wednesday.
Lamar University resumes Southland Conference play with a three-game series against Nicholls this weekend before heading on the road for five games.
GOLDEN LIONS AT A GLANCE
Arkansas – Pine Bluff comes into the contest with a 5-25 overall record while its 3-6 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
The Golden Lions have dropped their last five games, suffering a three-game sweep to Alabama State and dropping a two-game midweek series to Missouri.
UAPB's three-game series against Prairie View A&M this past weekend was postponed.
Senior catcher Vinny Saumell leads the offense with a .363 average, 37 hits, seven doubles and a .461 slugging percentage.
He is also tied for the team lead in RBIs (22) with senior utility player Ben VanMaanen.
Freshman outfielder Eli Gries-Smith is on a 12-game on base streak while ranking second on the team in batting average (.327) and hits (34).
The offense is batting a collective .278 with 265 hits, nine home runs and 154 RBIs.
Senior utility player Brant Voth leads the pitching staff with 24 strikeouts in 40.1 innings pitched.
Arkansas – Pine Bluff has put together a 9.32 ERA with 128 strikeouts in 222 innings pitched.
The Golden Lions swept Alcorn State in a three-game series, outscoring the opposition 54-17. UAPB won the third game, 24-3.
Last season the program finished 15-34 overall and 6-20 in SWAC play.
UAPB's last winning season came in 2015 when the team went 25-16 (14-6).
Head coach Logan Stout is in his first season at the helm of the program. He previously served as an assistant coach at Dallas Baptist from 2002-2003.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
This is the first meeting between both programs.
LU is 104-9 all-time against SWAC programs after having played Southern University, Mississippi Valley State, Alcorn State, Jackson State, Texas Southern, Grambling State and Prairie View A&M.
MIDWEEK SUCCESS
LU is 10-0 in midweek contests with only five remaining after this week. The Cardinals are 6-0 in midweek contests at home and 4-0 on the road.
Breakdown by conference:
- 3-0 vs. Conference USA
- 3-0 vs. American Athletic Conference
- 2-0 vs. The Summit League
- 1-0 vs. Horizon League
- 1-0 vs. Western Athletic Conference
WINNING
LU's 11-game winning streak was ranked second among current active streaks alongside Kent State. Austin Peay owns the nation's longest current winning streak at 12 games.
LU's 26 overall wins are tied for 10th most in the nation with Texas and Georgia Tech.
HITTER OF THE WEEK
Zak Skinner became the second Cardinal to earn SLC Hitter of the Week honors.
Damian Ruiz earned Hitter of the Week honors back on Feb. 24.
Skinner went 6 for 18 in four games with three doubles, three home runs and 12 RBIs.
In a 22-16 midweek win at Tarleton State, he finished 3 for 7 with a double, two home runs and eight RBIs. Skinner hit a grand slam in the first inning while he also hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning.
Skinner delivered the walk off RBI double in a 6-5 victory over UT Arlington in Game 2 as he finished with two doubles and two RBIs.
In the series finale, he hit a two-run home run.
Skinner is now tied for fourth in the conference in RBIs (35) while he is tied for fourth in at bats (135).
CARDINALS AT A GLANCE
The Cards are now ranked fourth in NCAA Division I in hits (369) behind Dayton (370), Georgia Tech (376) and the nation's leader, Alabama State (383).
LU is also tied for 16th in doubles (72), tied for 22nd in batting average (.316) and 24th in walks (186).
In the Southland Conference, the Cards lead the way in batting average, runs scored (276), hits and RBIs (246).
Ruiz has reached base safely in 33 consecutive games which ties him with
Kanin Dodge for the longest on base streak since 2010.
Ruiz is also riding a 16-game hitting streak, the longest of the season by any LU hitter.
During the 16 games, Ruiz has gone 27 for 63 (.429) with five doubles, one triple, three home runs and 11 RBIs. He has also recorded eight multi-hit games during that span.
Ruiz leads the team with 17 multi-hit games. He has 11 two-hit games and six three-hit performances this season.
He is tied for fifth in NCAA Division I in runs scored (50), tied for ninth in doubles (15), tied for 13th in hits (54) and 25th in batting average (.419).
Ruiz leads the conference in hits, runs scored and doubles while he is second in batting average, sixth in slugging percentage (.682), second in on base percentage (.522), sixth in on base + slugging percentage (1.204), tied for fourth in triples (2), tied for eighth in at bats (129) and fourth in walks (27).
Heladio Moreno is one of three batters in the SLC hitting at .400 or better. He ranks third in the conference in average (.400) while he is also tied for second in hits (50).
Moreno is also tied 28th in the nation in hits.
Zane Spinn has reached base safely in 10 straight games. He is eighth in the SLC in hits (45), tied for sixth in at bats (131) and sixth in RBIs (34).
Matt Ryan is tied for fifth in the conference in on base percentage (.477) as he is currently on a nine-game on base streak.
Brayden Evans is seventh in the SLC in hits (46), tied for eighth in RBIs (31) and second in at bats (137).
Riely Hunsaker is fourth in the conference in ERA (2.36), tied for ninth in batters struck out looking (11) and ninth innings pitched (42).
Chris Olivier ranks sixth in the SLC in ERA (2.90) and fourth in opposing batting average (.211).
Peyton Havard is tied for fifth in the conference in wins (4) while he is sixth in batters struck out (40).
The LU pitching staff leads the SLC in strikeouts (290) and innings pitched (294) while it's tied for first in saves (9) and second in ERA (3.86).
