The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB To Face Birmingham-Southern In Mid-Week Clash
5/1/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 1, 2006
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The UAB baseball team travels across town on Tuesday night, as the Blazers will play area rival Birmingham-Southern in a mid-week clash. This is the second meeting between the two schools in 2006, with UAB taking the 1-0 advantage with an extra-inning 3-2 win against the Panthers back on March 7th.
That contest lasted 13 innings, as a Zac Ward RBI single pushed across the winning run for the Blazers. That victory was in the midst of a season-high 12-game winning streak for UAB, and served as a promising start to the new year. That start has failed to materialize, however, as with 11 games remaining UAB now stands 16-29 overall and 3-12 in C-USA. The Green and Gold is currently four games out of sixth place in league play, and hopes of making a third straight conference tournament hinge on its ability to make up that ground.
The Panthers stand at 24-18 so far this season, but with an outstanding 11-4 mark in Big South action. BSC has won five out of its last six, including a win against No. 25 Troy University last week. Panther head coach Brian Shoop's squad is getting it done offensively, as the team sports a .297 average coming into Tuesday's game.
Birmingham-Southern has four hitters over the .300 mark, and have hit 37 home runs as a team. Scott Billak has been a mainstay in the Panther lineup, batting .354 with 11 doubles and a team-high 36 RBIs. The Panthers have also been aggressive on the basepaths, swiping 56 bases in 2006. Mark Goforth has been the master thief of the team, going a perfect 20-for-20 in stolen base attempts. John King will take the ball for the Panthers, as the right hander has appeared in 10 games for BSC, with no decisions and a 10.50 ERA.
UAB is 3-3 in its last six games, four of those matchups against teams in the top 15 nationally. The Blazers picked up their first win against a ranked opponent this past Saturday, taking game one of doubleheader against No. 13 Houston 7-4 at Young Memorial Field. Head coach Larry Giangrosso's squad had an effective week at the plate, hitting four home runs while scoring 21 runs. Phillip Bell was hot during that stretch, hitting .478 (7-for-16) with a round tripper and 3 RBIs.
Danny Sawyer and Ryne Lovdahl also swung hot sticks, combining to hit three blasts and drive in eight runs. Lovdahl's power stroke over the past two weeks has seen the junior from Purvis, Miss., jump to the team lead in home runs with six. Sawyer season total of 15 doubles is ranked sixth in C-USA.
First pitch is set for 6 p.m., with live stats provided at Birmingham-Southern's website. For complete postgame coverage, check UAB's athletics website, www.uabsports.com.
