The USCB baseball team opens Sun Conference play with a three-game series against visiting Southeastern this weekend at Richard Gray Sports Complex.
The Sand Sharks opened the season with a 19-4 rout of St. Andrews on Wednesday, collecting 19 runs and 19 hits in Jeremy Christian's debut as USCB's head coach. USCB will need to keep the bats ringing against the Fire, who have averaged 10.6 runs during a 9-0 start.
Although the Sand Sharks have played only one game, every eligible position player saw action Wednesday with 14 different players recording at least one hit and nine driving in at least one run. Junior outfielder Alex Murphy led the hit parade, going 2-for-3 with a grand slam, four RBIs and three runs.
Eight freshmen, including four true freshmen, made their collegiate debuts for USCB in the opener. Three freshmen – Noah Matthews, Michael Grunder and Tristan Triplett – recorded their first career hits with Matthews and Grunder collecting two hits apiece.
USCB swept a three-game series from the Fire last season and has won seven straight home games against Southeastern.
FIN FACTS
»» The Sand Sharks are 156-65 all-time at Richard Gray Sports Complex, including a 19-3 home mark last season.
»» The Sand Sharks enter the season ranked No. 18 in the NAIA Baseball Coaches Top 25 Poll after finishing the 2016 campaign ranked 13th, matching USCB's highest preseason ranking ever. The Sand Sharks also were ranked 18th entering the 2011 campaign.
»» Senior 1B/RHP Justin Kortessis was named the No. 13 pro prospect in the NAIA by Perfect Game last month. Kortessis was 7-0 with a 1.86 ERA in 15 appearances (six starts) for the Sand Sharks last season. He compiled 47 strikeouts and 19 walks in 48 1-3 innings.
»» Senior CF Thomas Estopare set single-season school records last year for runs (75), hits (88), doubles (23), total bases (142) and walks (48) and enters this season as USCB's career leader in batting average (.419), slugging percentage (.676) and on-base percentage (.534).
»» Senior OF Kal Davis shattered USCB's single-season record for RBIs when he drove in 71 runs last season, surpassing the previous mark by 14. Davis ranked 11th in the NAIA in RBIs and 10th in RBIs per game (1.291).
»» Senior CF Thomas Estopare has reached base in 36 consecutive games dating to last season, while senior OF Kal Davis has reached safely in 25 straight.
»» The Sand Sharks were aggressive on the basepaths in 2016, ranking 14th in the NAIA in stolen bases (116), 17th in stolen bases per game (2.000), and 22nd in steal attempts per game (2.448). First-year USCB coach Jeremy Christian's Point team also liked to run last year, swiping 101 bases. Christian's teams have swiped at least 99 bags in each of his five seasons as a head coach.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
The Fire are off to a red-hot start under first-year coach Adrian Dinkel, who brought several key players with him from last year's NAIA World Series team at Sterling (Kan.). Southeastern is hitting a whopping .401 as a team through nine games with Luis Diaz (.514, HR, 14 RBIs, 9 SBs), Gerald Ceballos (.462, HR, 11 RBIs) and Mike D'Acunti (.438, 2 HR, 8 RBIs) leading the way. The pitching staff also has been dominant, posting a 1.57 ERA with 70 strikeouts in 63 innings. Preseason All-America left-hander Kade Wagner (2-0, 0.82 ERA) and senior right-hander Nate Harmon (2-0, 0.00 ERA) anchor the starting rotation.
RELATED LINKS
USCB Schedule and Results
USCB Season Statistics
Sand Shark Baseball Record Book
Sun Conference Baseball Standings
