LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (16-10, 15-9 LSC) at
TEXAS A&M -KINGSVILLE (19-11, 11-6 LSC)
Friday, March 21 – 6 p.m.
Saturday, March 22 – 2 p.m. (DH)
Sunday, March 23 – 1 p.m.
Hays Field – Lubbock, Texas
 
LEADING OFF
The Chaparrals return to the friendly confines of Hays Field this weekend after a second-straight series win. Lubbock Christian took three of four on the road from Texas A&M International, using pitching and defense to get the job done in Laredo. The Dustdevils actually out-hit the Chaps .302 to .281 on the weekend, but LCU got a complete-game shutout from Ryan Markwardt in game two, and Jake Llaneza tossed six innings of one run ball in the series finale. Texas A&M-Kingsville is coming off a series split against St. Mary's, winning the first two games and losing the final two. The Javelinas have the third-best pitching staff in the LSC, posting a 4.60 ERA in 228.2 innings of work.
 
AWARD CENTRAL
For his performance against Texas A&M International, Markwardt earned both Lone Star Conference and NCBWA South Central Region Pitcher of the Week honors. It is the second time this season he has earned both awards, also winning them after the week of Feb. 10-16. That week, he also claimed National Pitcher of the Week honors. Markwardt notched his second complete game shutout of the season in a 7-0 win against Texas A&M International. It was a two-hitter this time around, as he held the Dustdevils to an .080 batting average and struck out five. Only one TAMIU hitter made it past first base, and that was in the bottom of the first inning. No Dustdevil had a hit after the third inning as Markwardt completed the shutout by himself on just 92 pitches.
 
IN THEIR DEFENSE
A large part of LCU's series win against the Dustdevils was their defense. They committed just one error in Laredo, finishing the series with three straight errorless games. TAMIU, meanwhile, committed 10 errors, including five in one game. It is the second time this season they have gone three straight games without an error. The last time LCU went more than three games without an error was from March 29 to April 9, 2019, when they went six straight games. Overall, the Chaps have a fielding percentage of .968, which is the third-best in the conference. The highest LCU fielding percentage for a season in the last decade was .972 in 2017.
 
TO START WITH
With Markwardt and Llaneza's strong outings, Lubbock Christian's starting pitchers posted an ERA of 5.19 in the four games against the Dustdevils. The series finale start by Llaneza was the best outing in a Chaparral uniform, allowing just one run in six innings of work. LCU's rotation in the weekend was rounded out by Lex Garcia, who struggled as the Friday starter, and Evan Roach, who struck out four Dustdevils in 3.1 innings of work. Texas A&M-Kingsville is projected to use Karson Shepherd, Ulises Quiroga, Gabriel LeBlanc and Daniel Cardona. The Javelina pitching staff leads the conference in strikeouts with 223 on the year. St. Edward's is the next-closest with 212.
 
I'VE GOT THE POWER
Lubbock Christian enters the weekend ranked No. 6 nationally in slugging percentage (.572), No. 7 in scoring (10.3), No. 4 in home runs (43), No. 6 in hits (305) and No. 9 in batting average (.341). The are also third nationally in walks drawn with 164. Six Chaparral starters are hitting at least .350, led by Brevin McCool and Jacob Gutierrez, who are both batting above .400. McCool also ranks second nationally in home runs (17), No. 3 in runs (41), No. 3 in slugging percentage (1.068) and No. 5 in runs batted in (41). Ryan Blackwell had the best offensive weekend in Laredo, hitting .517 with three extra-base hits. Brock Tijerina also continued his recent hot streak, hitting .353 against the Dustdevils. He is hitting a team-leading .441 in the month of March.
 
TABLE-SETTERS
One of the reasons the LCU offense has been so dangerous has been their ability to put the leadoff batter on base. The Chaps are reaching at a .449 clip this season in leadoff opportunities, compared to .408 by their opponents. Bowen, who was moved to the top of the lineup after the first month of the season, is reaching base at a .548 clip in leadoff opportunities. In the series finale against TAMIU, he hit a home run to lead off the game. Blackwell and Johnny Gomez III both have leadoff OBPs above the .600 mark, although in limited opportunities – 11 for Blackwell and 13 for Gomez.
 
PLEAD THE FIFTH
Lubbock Christian's highest-scoring inning this season – by a fairly wide margin – has been the fifth, when they have pushed across 56 runs. The next-closest frame – the sixth – has seen 42 runs score, and their lowest-scoring inning is the eighth, with only four runs. The Chaps hit .443 as a team in the fifth, making it their only frame with a batting average above .400. Nicklaus Baumbach leads the way with 10 fifth inning hits, including four doubles and two home runs. Gutierrez has blasted a team-leading three homers in the fifth, and the team slugs .779 in that inning.
 
THE FRIENDLY CONFINES
The Chaparrals have played exactly half of their 24-game home slate already this season, going 6-6 at Hays Field so far. 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 hitting .378 at home this season, with McCool, Gutierrez and Bowen all batting above .440. The Chaparrals are 1,188-365 in home games all-time.
 
STREAKS AND MUTLIS
The longest active streak on the team belongs to Johnny Gomez III, who has reached base in 21 straight games. The streak started on the second day of the season, when he had two hits off the bench against UT Tyler. Bowen has the longest active hit streak on the team at 10, and the longest the season by a Chap was Gutierrez with 14 straight games with a hit. Buambach is now tied with Gutierrez in multi-hit games with 14, and McCool still leads the team in multi-RBI games with 10.
 
2000 & 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 3,422 games throughout all those years, posting an overall program record of 2,297 wins and 1,125 losses in that time. For the last 20 seasons, it has been head coach Nathan Blackwood leading the program, and he has a 818-377 record.
 
THE SERIES WITH THE JAVELINAS
Lubbock Christian and Texas A&M-Kingsville only met twice before getting into the same conference in 2020. The series has been fairly even in the 24 meetings, with LCU winning 13 times against 11 losses. LCU took the series lead last year with a sweep in Kingsville, and the Chaps have won seven of the last eight meetings overall. Most of the meetings have occurred in Kingsville in the series, but the Chaps have a slight 4-3 edge in games played at Hays Field.
 
SCOUTING THE JAVELINAS

• Texas A&M-Kingsville has allowed double-digit runs only two times in 30 games played this season
• Infielder Isaiah Aguilar leads the Javelina offense with a .343 batting average, and five other TAMUK players are batting at least .300
• The Javelinas have hit just five home runs this season, which is the fewest in the Lone Star Conference, and their .374 slugging percentage is second-to-last in the league
• TAMUK's 55 stolen bases are the third-most among LSC teams
• The Javelinas have already played their two non-conference games, splitting a pair of midweeks against Texas A&M International