LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (25-10, 23-10, LSC) vs.
EASTERN NEW MEXICO (14-19, 13-18 LSC)
Saturday, April 9 – 2 p.m. (DH)
Hays Field – Lubbock, Texas
 
LEADING OFF
A clean game was played by both teams on Friday night, but Lubbock Christian was able to edge out Eastern New Mexico 5-3 and set themselves up nicely heading into the doubleheader portion of the series on Saturday. It's the ninth time in the 10 series the Chaps have played so far this season that they have claimed a win in the series-opener and given themselves a chance to win the series on Saturday. LCU will need a doubleheader sweep on Saturday to go ahead and win the series. They have split the doubleheader in each of the last two weeks.
 
STARTING PITCHING MATCHUP
Game One
LCU – Ethan Coombes is scheduled to pitch game one, going to the mound against his former team. Coombes, who is a native of Portales, New Mexico, where ENMU is located, went to the school from 2018-2020. He redshirted in his first season, but pitched 14 times in 2019. Before COVID-19 cut the 2020 season short, he was the ace of the Greyhound staff, starting six games and holding opponents to a .230 batting average in 35.2 innings. He transferred to Howard College after the season and played a year there before transferring to the Chaps for the 2021-2022 school year. With the Chaps this season, Coombes has a 5.93 ERA in 41.0 innings of work with 46 strikeouts and a .248 opponent's batting average.
 
ENMU – Damian Acosta should start opposite Coombes, bringing in a 6.29 ERA in 44.1 innings pitched. The right-hander has similar numbers to Coombes, with a large number of strikeouts but also struggles with the walk. Acosta is tied for the second-most strikeouts in the Lone Star Conference with 59, but his 38 walks lead the league as well. Opponents are hitting .243 against him with 15 doubles, one triple and one home run. He was solid last week against St. Mary's, allowing just three runs on two hits and five walks with seven strikeouts in 5.1 innings of work.
 
Game Two
LCU – Shandon Herrera is coming off a strong outing against West Texas A&M and will get the start in game two of the doubleheader. He tossed a complete game against the Buffs, allowing three runs on three hits and three walks with six strikeouts. It was his third complete game of the season, which is tied for the LSC lead. He has a 5.40 ERA in 46.2 innings of work with 34 strikeouts. Opponents are hitting .301 against him.
 
ENMU – Ruger Bravo has been the go-to guy in the second game of doubleheaders for Eastern New Mexico. He has three complete games on the season as well, posting an 8.49 ERA in 41.1 innings of work. He has allowed 61 hits and walked 21 batters while striking out 48. Opponents are hitting .341 against him. He has tossed back-to-back complete games and was at his best this season last week, when he allowed just three runs on six hits with 10 strikeouts and no walks against St. Mary's.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
.180 | Left-handed batters are hitting just .180 (9-50) against Chap starter Shandon Herrera, which is the lowest mark on the LCU staff
12 | Larry Leitha clubbed his 12^th home run of the season, keeping him in the No. 1 spot in the Lone Star Conference in that category
5.94 | Allowing just three runs in nine innings on Friday, the Chaparral pitching staff lowered its ERA to 5.94 in 272.2 innings of work
8 | Koi Carrillo earned a save on Friday night, which was the eighth of the year for LCU. It is tied for the second-most in the LSC
.311 | The Chaps were 4-for-12 with runners in scoring position in the series-opener, and they are hitting .311 in those scenarios this season