LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (8-4)
vs. ST. MARY'S (9-6)
March 1 - 3 p.m. (DH)
Dickson Stadium (San Antonio, Texas)
 
LEADING OFF
Lubbock Christian will hope for warmer weather this weekend as they travel to San Antonio to take on St. Mary's in a three-game non-conference series. The Chaps had two games canceled for snow last weekend as they went 1-1 in the two games they were able to play at MSU-Denver, moving to 8-4 on the season. The Rattlers had a pair of wins in their most recent weekend series, splitting four games against No. 2 ranked West Texas A&M. This weekend's matchup is one of three that Lubbock Christian will play against Heartland Conference opponents without the games counting toward conference standings.
 
THE CHAPARRAL NINE
• Lubbock Christian is 17th in the nation with a staff earned run average of 2.93
• LCU plays 17 of its first 22 games away from home this season
• Lubbock Christian will also play St. Edward's and TAMIU in non-conference series this season
• Chaps went 2-4 against the Rattlers last season and are 13-10 against them in the last five seasons
• LCU batters are hitting .422 (43-102) when leading off an inning
• Two Chap pitchers rank in top 10 nationally in strikeouts with Ryan Johnson at 3 and Callan Johnson at 9
• LCU's 15 home runs are the most in the Heartland Conference and rank No. 15 nationally
• Catcher Andrew Pratt already has 14 walks this season, just 4 less than in all of the 2018 season
 
THE STARTERS AND THE STAFF
Lubbock Christian's pitching staff currently has an overall earned run average of jut 2.93, which ranks 17^th best in all of Division II baseball. The Chaparral staff is led by the starting pitchers, which has included Ryan Johnson, Callan Johnson, Ricky Contreras, Logan McCrummen and Nathan Dockery this season. Those starters have posed an even lower ERA at 2.36 while striking out 93 batters and holding opponents to just a .202 average.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
The Chaps will play 17 of their first 22 games this season away from the friendly confines of Hays Field and City Bank Clubhouse, where they are 4-3 so far this season.  They have played just one home series (vs. Cameron Feb. 8-10) and) and will not play on their own turf again until March 14. The Chaps were scheduled to play one more home game in February against New Mexico Highlands but postponed it until March because of weather. LCU was 13-14 in games away from Lubbock last season and is 72-60 in road or neutral site games in the last five seasons.
 
THREE'S COMPANY
The Chaps are currently No. 3 nationally and first in the Heartland Conference with a team total of eight triples on the year. Only two teams, Colorado State-Pueblo and Lynn, have more triples than LCU, and each of them only has nine. Six different Lubbock Christian hitters have tallied three-baggers already this season, including Andres Negron, who hit his first of the season last weekend against MSU-Denver. Chase Whetsel and Hill Alexander are tied for the team lead with two each.
 
POWER AT THE PLATE
Although their team batting average of .309 ranks second best in the conference and 43^rd nationally, the Chaparrals have been able to average almost seven runs a game so far this season thanks to their power hitting ability. LCU is 29^th in doubles nationally (third in the conference) third in triples (first in conference) and 15^th in home runs (first in conference), leading to a slugging percentage of .515. Their slugging ranks 23^rd best in the nation and is first in the conference by 37 points.
 
MOTHER NATURE
LCU played 12 games in the month of February but was scheduled for 15. Earlier in the month, the team was forced to postpone a home game with New Mexico Highlands due to weather in Lubbock. The game will now be played on March 26 at Hays Field. The Chaps also had two games canceled this past weekend in Denver, where snowfall limited the opportunities for games.
 
SOLO SHOTS
With 15 home runs as a team already this season, Lubbock Christian leads the Heartland Conference and ranks No. 15 nationally. More than half of those home runs, however, have been without runners on base, and six of them have come when the batter was leading off an inning. Last season, when LCU also led the conference with 63 home runs, only 22 of them (35%) were of the one-run variety. The Chaps' have also hit six two-run homers and two three-run homers this year. 
 
SWINGING IN THE SECOND
 Offensively, the Chaps' best inning has been the second so far this season. LCU hitters have recorded 29 hits with a .475 team batting average in that inning. Third basemen Braden Hayward has the most hits in the second inning with five, and Chase Whetsel and Hill Alexander have both hit two home runs in the second. Of the 82 runs LCU has scored overall, 19 have come in the second inning.  
 
SWING AWAY
When Nathan Blackwood is signaling from the third base coaching box, he is most likely not telling his hitter to lay down a sacrifice bunt. LCU ranked dead last in the Heartland Conference in bunts last season with just 17. The next lowest total came from Newman, but even the Jets had 27 on the year. This year, the Chaps have laid down exactly four sacrifice bunts, again ranking last in the conference.
 
LOOKING AT THE LAST SERIES
Lubbock Christian went out of state for the second time this season, traveling to Denver to take on Metro State. Two of the games on the weekend were canceled because of weather, leading to a doubleheader on Sunday that included a seven inning game and a nine inning game. The Chaps took the first one 4-1 behind another stellar outing from Ryan Johnson. Callan Johnson had a 1-0 lead for most of the second game, but the Roadrunners scored an eighth-inning run and then won the game on a walkoff in the 10^th, sending the Chaps home with a series split
 
IN THE POLLS
LCU cracked the top 10 in one Division II National Baseball Poll this week, moving up three spots to No. 10 exactly. Only two in-region teams are ranked above the Chaps in Texas A&M-Kingsville (9) and Colorado Mesa (2). LCU is not ranked or receiving votes in the national poll for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, but was slotted at No. 5 in the association's South Central Regional Poll.
 
MAJOR-LEAGUE CONNECTION
With MLB spring training under way and opening day right around the corner, a pair of former Chaparral baseball players have been busy. Buck Britton (IF, 2007-08) and Wigberto Nevarez (C, 2013-14) are both now in the coaching ranks in professional baseball. Britton was promoted and named the Double-A manager for the Bowie Baysox of the Baltimore Orioles organization. Nevarez has just ended his playing career and will serve as a coach with the Single-A Rome Braves of the Atlanta Braves organization.
 
2000 AND COUNTING
Since the inception of LCU's baseball program in 1971, the Chaparrals have been one of the best baseball teams at whatever level they were playing at. Lubbock Christian has played 3,087 games throughout all those years, posting an overall program record of 2,081 wins and 1,006 losses in that time.
 
HOMEGROWN PRODUCTS
Of the 33 players on the Lubbock Christian University baseball team this season, exactly one third (11) played high school baseball in Lubbock. Another three players on the 2019 of LCU's baseball team are from the surrounding area of Lubbock, including Idalou, New Deal and Shallowater.
 
COACHING CONSISTENCY
Lubbock Christian is bringing back the same three main coaches that have been with the team each of the last six seasons. Pitching coach Justin Sundlie, who played catcher at LCU in 2005 and 2006, is the newbie of the group, entering his seventh season with the Chaps, while head coach Nathan Blackwood and hitting coach Bob Fannin have been leading the program for the last 15 seasons. Together, the group has led LCU to a pair of first place finishes in the Heartland Conference, two NCAA South Central Regional appearances and a 223-111 (.667) won-loss record.