LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (8-16, 7-14 LSC) vs.
EASTERN NEW MEXICO (6-18, 6-18 LSC)
Saturday, April 3 – 1 p.m.
Hays Field – Lubbock, Texas
 
LEADING OFF
When the 2021 baseball schedule was released, Lubbock Christian University was scheduled to be on the road in Portales this weekend. But, in a year full of oddities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Eastern New Mexico is unable to play any home baseball games this year and the Chaps will instead serve as hosts for the three-game series with the Greyhounds. LCU is looking for a win to stop a four-game losing streak after suffering a series sweep at the hands of West Texas A&M last weekend. ENMU enters the series currently ranked last in the Lone Star Conference with a 6-18 overall record and in league play. The series will be played with one game on Friday and a doubleheader on Saturday.
 
THE CHAPARRAL NINE

• Lubbock Christian and Eastern New Mexico are meeting on the diamond for the first time since 2016
• LCU ranks in the top half of the Lone Star Conference with a .957 fielding percentage
• Chap relievers have posted an ERA of 4.51 in 101 and two thirds innings of work this season
• LCU leadoff batters are reaching base at a .394 clip, including a .370 OBP vs. West Texas A&M
• ENMU comes into the series with the LSC's worst batting average (.237) and the 2nd-worst ERA (8.84)
• This weekend starts a nine-game LCU homestand, and they have 12 games left at Hays Field this season
• Right-handed batters are hitting just .273 against LCU's pitching staff
• The Greyhounds are in their second year under head coach Riley Price

 
A LITTLE STREAKY
Lubbock Christian catcher Luis Navarro enters this weekend's series having hit in 15 straight games, which is the longest streak by a Chap batter since Tony Reyes hit safely in 18 consecutive games in 2017. Navarro has hit safely in every game since March 5 against Angelo State. Colin Gordon has also put together a nice seven-game hist streak dating back to March 21. Two other Chaparall players – Caden Hensley and George Mendazona – have reached-base streaks up in the double-digits, with Hensley reaching in 13 straight and Mendazona in 11 in a row.
 
ROUND-TRIPPERS
In their most recent series against West Texas A&M, the Chaps had four different players combine for five home runs, giving them 27 on the year, which is the third-most of any LSC team. Navarro was the only LCU player with two in the series and is now tied for the team lead with five. Eduardo Acosta also has five, but has not hit one since March 14 against TAMIU. Gordon, Mendazona and Grant Griffin all have three apiece, and Mason Donohoe, Cayde Ward and Nolan Machibroda each hitting two. Trevor Andrus cleared the wall for the first time this season in the series opener against the Buffs and Larry Leitha has also hit one home run.
 
OH, WHAT A REIEF IT IS
LCU has relied on its bullpen often this season and the relievers have responded well, posting an ERA of 4.51 in more than 100 innings of work. Cade Acrey has been the most-used reliever, appearing 11 times out of the bullpen, including twice in the WT series. He has an ERA of 4.50 on the year, allowing 11 earned runs in 22 innings of work with 20 strikeouts. Freshman Owen Woodward has also been solid in relief and did not allow an earned run in his first 16.1 innings of work. Logan Ellis has allowed just one earned run in three relief outing, and Tyler Hardwick has an ERA of 3.38 when coming out of the bullpen.
 
PITCHER'S BEST FRIEND
With a pitching staff that leans more on groundouts (207) than they do flyouts (181), it is no surprise that the Chaps rank No. 20 nationally and are third in the Lone Star Conference with 18 double plays turned this season. Acrey has gotten the most used out of the double play, inducing four this season, but six other LCU pitchers have had double plays turned behind them this year.
 
THE STRONG ARM OF THE LAW
LCU has been the best team in the Lone Star Conference this season at catching runners stealing with a total of 22 on the year. The next-closest teams are Arkansas Fort Smith and UT Tyler with 12 each. Some of the work has been done by LCU pitchers, but the majority of it has been done by catcher Luis Navarro, who has the LSC's individual lead in runners caught stealing with 17. Twice this season, Navarro has caught three runners in a single game, which has tied the school record. He caught eight runners last year, giving him 25 in his Chaparral career.
 
FRIENDLY CONFINES
This weekend's games will be 10 through 12 of 21 scheduled homes games for the Chaps this season. Originally dedicated on April 29, 1978 as Chaparral Stadium, the complex was renamed Hays Field in 1999 to honor the L.D., Pearl, Larry, and Daren Hays families for their dedication and commitment to the ideals and values of Lubbock Christian University. The playing dimensions of Hays Field measure 340 feet down the lines, 380 feet to the power alleys, and 400 feet to straight away center. LCU is 2-7 on their own turf this year and the program is 1,109-333 in home games all-time.
 
NO ONE-HIT WONDERS
Lubbock Christian has already had 64 different multi-hit performances from 13 different players this season, after posting only 30 in 24 games a year ago. Acosta leads the way 11 multi-hit games so far this year, while Navarro has 10 and Gordon has eight. Hernandez had the team's first five-hit game of the season (matching the LCU program record) on March 27 against St. Edward's.
 
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 3,201 games throughout all those years, posting an overall program record of 2,153 wins and 1,061 losses in that time. Head coach Nathan Blackwood has been leading the program for 969 of those games, going 673-302.
 
SCOUTING THE GREYHOUNDS

• ENMU has won just one series so far this year, taking two out of three from UT Permian Basin, but they are coming off a win in the series finale at St. Mary's
• The Greyhounds have the second-worst fielding percentage in the LSC, having committed 50 errors in 789 chances
• Outfielder Cole Luedeking leads the offense with a .333 batting average. He and infielder Trevor Moses are the only two ENMU players with averages over .300.
• Opponents are hitting .322 against Eastern New Mexico's pitching staff, and they have allowed double-digit runs 11 times this year
• The Greyhounds have 17 players new to their roster for the season, including 12 who transferred in from other collegiate programs

 
THE SERIES WITH THE GREYHOUNDS
Lubbock Christian and Eastern New Mexico have been meeting on the baseball diamond since 1971, which was LCU's first year to field a baseball team as a four-year institution. They have met 79 times overall, with LCU leading the all-time series 58-21. They last met on April 19, 2016, with LCU winning 7-4. ENMU's last win in the series was by a score of 3-2 on Feb. 21, 2015.