3-seed LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (35-16)
at 2-seed ANGELO STATE (42-9)
May 17 – 3:30 p.m.
Foster Field (San Angelo, Texas)
 
LEADING OFF
Lubbock Christian University's baseball team has their backs against the wall after a 9-4 loss to Rogers State on Thursday night put them one game away from elimination in the NCAA Tournament. The Chaps will now face a familiar foe in Angelo State, who won the Lone Star Conference Regular Season Title. LCU and ASU have faced off either in San Angelo or Lubbock every year since 2013, including a three-series that the Chaps won at Angelo State earlier this year. If LCU wins the game, they will move on to face the winner of the night game on Saturday at 3:30.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
23-9 | LCU lost for just the ninth time this season when scoring first on Thursday night against Rogers State
.417 | Hill Alexander was Lubbock Christian's leading hitter in the three-game series against ASU earlier this year, batting .417 with two home runs
12 | Thursday night's game was just the fourth time this season that the hits between two teams in an LCU game were tied (at 12 apiece) and the Chaps are 1-3 in those contests
9-14 | Angelo State and Lubbock Christian have met 23 times since 2013 and the Chaps are 9-14 in those contests
.471 | Ram outfielder Josh Elvir leads all of Division II with a .471 batting average this season
4 | Chaps have lost four straight games for the first time all season and the first time since April 27-28, 2018 when they were swept by St. Edward's
.258 | In the last four LCU games (all losses) only Hill Alexander has hit above the .300 mark and the overall team batting average is .258
140 | ASU is third nationally with 140 stolen bases as a team and seven different Rams have stolen at least 10 this season
1.28 | Lubbock Christian is average 1.28 home runs per game, which is the 13^th best in all of Division II
32 | Andrew Pratt reached base in his 32nd consecutive game for the longest streak since Ryan Meade also reached in 32 straight in 2012
 
LCU IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Lubbock Christian first became eligible for postseason play as an NCAA Division II school in 2016 and immediately reached the postseason that first year. Including this year, the Chaps have now reached the NCAA Tournament in three of their four eligible years, and they are 3-5 in tournament games. LCU won a pair of games in their first ever regional experience at Colorado Mesa before losing two games, and won their first tournament game in 2017 before two straight losses ended their season. Each of the two previous LCU teams in the tournament saw their season end at the hands of this year's host, Angelo State. Only two players on the 2019 squad had previous Division II regional experience in Ricky Contreras (2.79 ERA in 19.1 innings pitched) and Keaton Greenwalt (two games played). Hill Alexander played in a Division I regional in Fayetteville, Arkansas last season, but did not have a hit in 10 at-bats.
 
REGIONAL RECOGNITION
Three players were recognized on Wednesday when the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association All-South Central Region Team. Heartland Conference Player of the Year Hill Alexander was named to the All-Region First Team as an outfielder, and he was joined there by Heartland Conference Pitcher of the Year Ryan Johnson. LCU third basemen Braden Hayward was recognized as well on the All-Region Second Team. Only one other Heartland Conference player was recognized regionally in Arkansas-Fort Smith pitcher Javon Rigsby. The regional Pitcher of the Year was West Texas A&M's Joe Corbett and the Player of the Year was Josh Elvir of Angelo State.
 
HEARTLAND WINNERS
The Chaps were well-represented in the All-Heartland Conference honorees, which were announced on Wednesday. Outfielder Hill Alexander was named the league's Player of the Year, while Ryan Johnson won Pitcher of the Year. The two were joined on the All-Conference First Team by six other Chaps, including Chandler Casey (relief pitcher), Andrew Pratt (catcher), Braden Hayward (third base), and Keaton Greenwalt (outfield). LCU also placed two on the All-Conference Second Team in Andres Negron (shortstop) and Will Clark (designated hitter). There were also four Chaps named to the Heartland All-Defensive Team, including Negron, Greenwalt, Casey and second basemen Eddy Vasquez.
 
POWER SURGE
So far in the 2019 season, five different Chaparral batters have already delivered with single game, multi-homer performances. Outfielder/Designated hitter Will Clark was the most recent to do it, homering twice against TAMIU on 4/19. First basemen James Hardberger was the first to do it with a pair of four-baggers on 2/3 vs. Missouri Southern St. Two different players had multi-homer games at the same time on 2/11, as both Keaton Greenwalt and Chase Whetsel homered twice against Cameron on 2/11. Andrew Pratt has three multi-homer games, hitting two on both 3/1 vs. St. Mary's and 3/8 vs. St. Edward's and smashing three homers against Newman on 3/29. Hill Alexander had multi-homer games on 4/5 against Oklahoma Christian and against St. Edward's on 3/9.
 
CAREER NUMBERS
LCU senior pitcher Ricky Contreras has been a mainstay in the rotation for the last four seasons and is now climbing up the program record books in a number of categories. The Lubbock native is third all-time in innings pitched with 311.2. He is 76.1 innings behind Noel Delgado, who holds the top spot since the program's beginnings in the 1970s. Contreras is also now tied for third all time in strikeouts with 268, with Gordon Heiselbetz. The number is 51 behind the leader Shane Riddle. Finally, he is tied for fourth all-time with 28 wins and will move into a tie for third (with John Harris) if he wins one more game.
 
STATION-TO-STATION
Of the 260 ranked teams in Division II baseball, Lubbock Christian is 235th in stolen base with just 27 on the season. The number also ranked dead last of the eight teams in the Heartland Conference. LCU stole more often last season with 38 during 2018 and swiped even fewer bags in 2015 with just 25. Keaton Greenwalt has almost half of the steals for his team with 12 on 13 attempts. Hill Alexander (6), Chase Whetsel (4) and Will Clark (3) are the only other Chaps with multiple steals on the year.
 
IN THE POLLS
Lubbock Christian was recognized in all three of the three most recent Division II polls. The Chaps' highest ranking came from Perfect Game, where sit in the No. 4 spot. LCU also made the top 25 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Poll, where they are No. 23. They moved back into the top 25 of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association poll after previously being un-ranked last week. Their ranking in that poll is their highest of the season at No. 19.
 
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.
 
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. Lubbock Christian has played 3,125 games throughout all those years, posting an overall program record of 2,107 wins and 1,018 losses in that time.
 
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 Blackwoodand 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 249-123 (.667) won-loss record.
 
MAJOR-LEAGUE CONNECTION
With the 2019 Major League Baseball season under way, 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.