The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Baseball Travels to UCF for Conference Series
4/20/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 20, 2006
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The UAB baseball team will hit the road this weekend, hoping for a turnaround from its recent experiences. The Blazers travel to Orlando, Fla. as they take on Conference USA foe UCF in a three-game series. This will be the first-ever meeting between the new C-USA rivals, and it will be the first and only time UAB will head to the Sunshine State this season.
The Blazers dropped to 0-9 in conference play after losing three games to Marshall last weekend, and now stand at 13-25 overall. UAB fell to Troy on Tuesday, 5-4, extending its winless streak to 18 games. The Blazers' struggles have seen some painful losses, as Tuesday's defeat was the eighth one-run loss of the season. The Blazers have also dropped nine contests to teams ranked in the top 25 this year, and have played two teams (Rice, Mississippi State) who have been ranked No. 1.
UAB has seen a spike in its power number recently, as the Blazers have hit four home runs in their last four games. That gives UAB 26 bombs on the year, which ranks sixth in Conference USA. Junior Zac Ward leads the way, as his five home runs are tops of the team. Ryne Lovdahl hit his fourth round tripper against Marshall, placing him second on the squad. Billy Lichtner, Jorge Gutierrez and Danny Sawyer have all hit three home runs in 2006, adding the longball to a lineup that has scored 198 runs so far this year.
The Golden Knights of UCF are known for their pitching, as the hard throwing staff has combined for 3.72 ERA in its 40 games, good enough for fourth in the conference. The bread and butter of the team has been the starters, as the three weekend hurlers have posted nine wins while striking out 150 batters. Friday ace Tim Bascom has been untouchable, going 5-3 on the season with a microscopic 1.25 ERA, the best in C-USA. Bascom's numbers are dominant, allowing only nine runs in 65 innings of work, while fanning 80 hitters during his time on the hill. Saturday starter Mitch Houck is no slouch either, going 3-1 in his six appearances with a 2.66 ERA. Opposing hitters can only muster a .213 average against Houck, and have managed only two home runs off of him all season.
Jacob Legg will take the hill for the Blazers on Friday, just one start removed from the best outing of his UAB career. Legg threw a complete game five-hitter against Rice on April 7th. The senior, in his first start of 2006, hurled the second complete game of the season, setting a career high in innings pitched. Jim Crew is penciled in on Saturday, as the sophomore righthander returns to a weekend rotation spot after a two-week hiatus. Crew was dominant early in 2006, winning his first three decisions with an ERA under 2.00. He is now 3-2 on the year with a 2.80 mark, which is the best on the UAB staff. Freshman Kyle Roberson will toe the rubber on Sunday, as the righthander will make the first C-USA start of his career. The native of Clay, Ala., has started three games in 2006, and has an 0-1 record with a 5.40 ERA.
First pitch Friday night is set for 6:30 pm, and can be followed online with Gametracker. Gametracker is available at UCF's website, www.ucfathletics.com. For complete postgame coverage, check UAB's athletics website, www.uabsports.com.
