ARKANSAS – FORT SMITH (17-7, 6-0) NO.10 LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (18-7, 4-2)
Thursday, March 24 –
Game 1: 4:00 p.m. Game 2: 6:00 p.m.
Hays Field (Lubbock, Texas)
Radio: KJTV am950/100.7fm
All-Time Series: LCU leads 3-1
Tweet #LCUvsUAFS
 
PROJECTED STARTING PITCHERS
 
GAME 1
LCU – Guillaume Blanchette (6-0, 0.72 ERA)
UAFS – Clayton Whelchel (3-0, 3.82 ERA)
 
GAME 2
LCU – Russell Reber (2-1, 3.95 ERA)
UAFS – Evan Sanders (4-2, 2.65 ERA)
 
RANKINGS
LCU: No. 10 (Collegiate Baseball Newspaper), No.11 (NCBWA), No.28 (D2Baseball News).
 
UAFS: Unranked
 
CREAM OF THE CROP
Lubbock Christian University opens a Heartland Conference three-game series Thursday hosting Arkansas-Fort Smith for a doubleheader. The Lions are atop the Heartland Conference and the only unbeaten team in conference with a 6-0 conference record. LCU sits two games back at 4-2 in conference and is in a four-way tie for second place. The two clubs will complete the three-game series Friday at Hays Field.
 
ABOVE AVERAGE
LCU leads the Heartland Conference and ranks 19^th nationally batting .333 on the season.  The Chaps have produced at least 10 hits in 17 of 25 games played this season. Two of the top six in batting in the Heartland Conference are members of the Chaps (Brandon Rix .413 ranks fourth and Hunter McFall .411 ranks sixth).
 
THE HUNTER
Hunter McFall co-leads the Heartland Conference and ranks 19^th nationally in runs-batted-in with 31. The senior infielder averages 1.3 RBI per game, ranking 46^th nationally in the category. McFall has nine multi-RBI games this season (the next closest is six) and enters Thursday's play on an eight-game hit streak.
 
HOME RUNS
The Chaparrals are 13-2 at home this season and have out-scored their opponents 129-60 this season at home. LCU is hitting .355 at home and have a 46-19 advantage in extra-base hits at home. Brandon Rix is hitting .473 at home this season. Hunter McFall has 22 of his 31 RBI at home. LCU's opponents have a 8.59 ERA at Hays Field this season.  Hunter McFall and Tony Reyes have reached base safely at least once in all 15 home games.
 
STREAKS
JP Rousseau enters Thursday's doubleheader on an eight-game hit streak and Jaime Bustamante has reached base safely in 13 consecutive games, which is the longest streak of the season.
 
BLANCHETTE TO OPEN
In the opening game of Thursday's doubleheader, LCU will start Guillaume Blanchette on the mound. He is 6-0 on the season (co-leads the nation) with a 0.72 ERA (ninth nationally) and five complete games (second nationally). Opponents are batting .147 against him this season. Blanchette also ranks fourth nationally in WHIP (0.51) and ninth in hits allowed per nine innings (4.5). He has allowed two runs in his last combined six starts.
 
REBER TO FOLLOW
LCU is going with Russell Reber on the mound in the second game. Reber is 2-1 this season with a 3.95 ERA. He has allowed five earned runs over his last 22 innings pitched. He pitched last Friday against St. Mary's and allowed one run in six innings of a 1-0 loss.
 
LIONS DEN
The Rattlers are expected to start Clayton Whelchel in the opener and Evan Sanders in the second game on the mound. Whelchel (3-0, 3.82 ERA) registered the win last Saturday against Texas A&M International. He went seven innings and allowed five runs off eight hits and struck out five. Sanders (4-2, 2.65) had the win in a 15-5 win over TAMIU and allowed two runs off four hits in five innings. He walked five batters and did not have a strikeout. 
 
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT UAFS
- The Lions are 17-7 on the season, 6-0 in conference and 7-7 on the road.
- They are coming off a three-game series against TAMIU in which they went 3-0.
- UAFS is hitting .314 as a team, with Josh Vanderpool hitting .429 on the season. He has 10 doubles on the season.
- UAFS was preseason picked third in the Heartland Conference Preseason Poll after going 15-10 last season in conference play.
- The Lions have hit 22 home runs this season and surrendered seven. Blaise Warrick and Kasey Cooper each have seven home runs.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
LCU is 3-1 all-time against UAFS. The Lions won the only meeting last season in Fort Smith in a series hampered by snow.  The Chaps swept UAFS in a three-game series in 2014 at Hays Field.