Alabama Baseball Team Hosts Canisius
2/15/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
BAMA, CANISIUS MEET FOR FIRST TIME
The University of Alabama baseball team will host the Canisius College Golden Griffins in a three-game series this weekend Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The series opener is set for Friday, Feb. 16 at 6:30 p.m. (CST) and will the first meeting between the two schools. The two teams will also square off on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 3 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 19 at 11 a.m. Alabama (3-1) suffered its first loss of the 2007 season on Wednesday as the Crimson Tide fell to Troy 7-5 in 12 innings. Alabama took a 4-1 lead into the eighth inning but saw Troy tie the game with a three-run eighth inning. The Trojans added three in the 12th inning for the win. Freshman third baseman Jake Smith (Hueytown, Ala.) was the hitting star for Alabama in the loss. Smith went 3-for-6 with three RBI against the Trojans. Sophomore right fielder Kent Matthes (Orlando, Fla.) also turned in a big day with two highlight-reel catches in right field and the school’s first inside-the-park home run in 12 years. Sophomore right-hander Tommy Hunter (Indianapolis, Ind.) pitched three scoreless innings and struck out three against Troy in his first relief role of the season. Hunter will now be pushed back to Saturday in the weekend starting rotation against Canisius. Sophomore right-hander Casey Kebodeaux (Mandeville, La.) will open the series on the mound. Sophomore left-hander Miers Quigley (Roswell, Ga.) will start in Sunday’s series finale. The Crimson Tide will not have the services of senior left-hander Brandon Belcher (Ruston, La.) on the mound this weekend after suffering a strained muscle in his arm. Belcher’s injury is not serious and head coach Jim Wells wants “to be careful in cold weather”. Belcher is available this weekend to play left field or serve as the designated hitter. Canisius (0-0) opens the 2007 season this weekend at Alabama.
THE HEAD COACHES
Alabama head baseball coach Jim Wells (Northwestern State, 1980) is the winningest coach in school history. He has compiled a 526-247 (.680) record in 13 seasons at the Capstone. Overall, Wells has posted a 718-336 (.680) record in 18 seasons. Canisius head coach Mike McRae is 92-142 (.393) in five years at the Division I level. He is 27-74 (.267) in his first two seasons with the Griffins.
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP
Odr No. Name Pos. Bats 2007 Stats
1 2 Emeel Salem CF L/L .313 (5x16), 2 HR, 2 RBI, 7 R, 3 SB
2 10 Jeff Texada 2B R/R .467 (7x15), 1 HR, 4 RBI, 4 BB
3 14 Jake Smith 3B R/R .467 (7x15), 1 HR, 6 RBI
4 16 Alex Avila DH L/R .308 (4x13), 2 HR, 4 RBI
5 22 Kent Matthes RF R/R .353 (6x17), 1 HR, 5 RBI, 4 R
6 34 Ryan Rhoden LF R/R .214 (3x14), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2 R
7 25 Matt Bentley 1B L/R .182 (2x11), 0 HR, 0 RBI
8 23 Jared Avchen C R/R .333 (4x12), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 3 R
9 3 Greg Paiml SS R/R .417 (7x17), 1 HR, 5 RBI, 2-2 SB
Pitchers: Alabama Crimson Tide
Game 1 -- Casey Kebodeaux (RHP, 1 GS, 1-0, 1.80 ERA)
Game 2 -- Tommy Hunter (RHP, 2 G, 1 GS, 1-0, 0.00 ERA)
Game 3 -- Miers Quigley (LHP, 2 G, 1 GS, 0-0, 1.80 ERA)
Canisius Golden Griffins
Game 1 -- Matt Weber (LHP, 15 G, 14 GS, 4-6, 7.68 ERA in 2006)
Game 2 -- Alex MacKenzie (RHP, 10 G, 1-1, 12.00 ERA in 2006)
Game 3 -- To Be Announced
ALABAMA-CANISIUS SERIES
This weekend’s three-game series will be the first meeting ever between Alabama and Canisius.
ALABAMA VS. MAAC
*Alabama owns a 3-0 (1.000) all-time record against Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) teams.
*All three wins came against Niagara during the 1999 season. The Crimson Tide outscored the Purple Eagles, 60-5, in the three-game sweep.
*Alabama posted a 27-0 win over Niagara in the series finale as senior outfielder G.W. Keller tied the UA single-game record with three home runs in the win.
*Keller hit those three home runs in consecutive at-bats and saw only eight pitches.
*The win was the third-largest win in Bama history and the most lopsided shutout in school history.
*Alabama has never faced Canisius, Fairfield, Iona, LeMoyne, Manhattan, Marist, Rider, Siena or St. Peter’s in baseball action.
*Alabama assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Joe Raccuia was the head coach at Marist before taking his current position with the Crimson Tide.
*He posted a 58-51 (.532) overall record during the 2004 and 2005 seasons, leading the Red Foxes to the 2005 MAAC regular-season and tournament championship.
*His team earned a bid in the 2005 Baton Rouge Regional before losing to LSU and Northwestern State in the double-elimination tournament.
CANISIUS VS. SEC
*Canisius opens the 2007 season with a three-game series at Alabama Feb. 16-18, marking the first time Canisius has played a school from the SEC.
*Canisius will also play two games at SEC member Kentucky March 13-14.
*Alabama (20-10 SEC) and Kentucky (20-10) were SEC Co-Champions in 2006.
POWER SURGE
*Alabama has stroked eight home runs this season and has at least one home run in all four games.
*Six different players have homered so far for the Crimson Tide.
*Senior center fielder Emeel Salem (Mountain Brook) and sophomore designated hitter Alex Avila (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) lead the way with two home runs each.
*Freshman third baseman Jake Smith (Hueytown), senior shortstop Greg Paiml (Hoover), sophomore second baseman Jeff Texada (New Iberia, La.) and sophomore right fielder Kent Matthes (Oralndo, Fla.) each have one home run this season.
*Alabama did not hit its eighth home run last year until Feb. 26, 2006, the 10th game of the season.
INSIDE THE PARK HOME RUN
*Matthes hit his first home run of the 2007 season against Troy on Feb. 14 with an inside-the-park-home run that caromed off the top of the wall in left-center field.
*It was the first inside-the park home run for Alabama in 12 years. Dustan Mohr had the last inside-the-park home run against Penn State on March 5, 1995.
*In addition to his home run, Matthes also turned in two highlight-reel catches in right field, including take a two-run home run away from Troy catcher Beau Brooks in the eighth inning with a leaping catch at the 365-mark in mark in right-center field that would have given Troy a two-run lead.
FIRST INNING SCORING CONTINUES
*Alabama has scored in the first inning in all four games this season.
*The Crimson Tide scored two runs during the first inning in all three games against Georgia State last weekend and tallied on run in the loss to Troy on Feb. 14.
*Alabama is batting .450 (9-for-20) during the first inning this season, with one home run and five RBI.
*The Crimson Tide has scored seven, first-inning runs this year.
OPPONENTS SCORE LATE
*While Alabama has tallied seven first inning runs during its first four games, Crimson Tide opponets are cashing in late in the game.
*UA opponents have scored 13 runs through the first four games of the season, with 11 runs coming in the eighth inning or later.
*In fact, Alabama opponents have scored eight runs in their final at-bat this season.
*Georgia State scored five of its six runs in the ninth inning last weekend.
*Troy scored three runs in the 12th inning to post a 7-5 win on Feb. 14.
*In fact, the Trojans scored six of their seven runs after the seventh inning. Troy also scored three runs in the eighth to tie the game at 4-4 and forced extra innings.
*Alabama opponents are batting .173 (17-for-98) in the first seven innings.
*Alabama opponents are batting .292 (14-for-48) in the eighth inning or later.
HOMEBODIES
*Alabama will play 23 of its first 25 games at home, including all 11 games in the month of February.
*In fact, the Crimson Tide opens the season with 14 straight home games, before playing its first road game against Southern Miss on March 6, 2007 at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Miss.
*The only other road game is a March 14, 2007 trip to Birmingham to face the Samford Bulldogs at Joe Lee Griffin Field on the Samford campus.
*Bama is home for the first six weekends of the regular season as they host Georgia State (Feb. 9-11), Canisius (Feb. 16-18), Villanova (Feb. 23-25), McNeese State (March 2-4), Nebraska (March 9-11) and Tennessee (March 16-18).
*Alabama does not play its first weekend road series until March 23-25, 2007 when the Crimson Tide travels to Oxford, Miss., to face the Ole Miss Rebels.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
A trio of Alabama players will celebrate birthdays on Saturday, Feb. 17, including pitcher Bernard Robert, first baseman Wes Henderson and second baseman Jeff Texada. Robert will be 22, Henderson will be 21 and Texada will be 20 on Saturday.
ON DECK
Following the series with Canisius, Alabama will not play again until Friday, Feb. 23 when the Crimson Tide opens a three-game series with the Villanova Wildcats here in Tuscaloosa. The dates and game times for the Alabama-Villanova series are Friday, Feb. 23 (6:30 p.m.), Saturday, Feb. 24 (1 p.m.) and Sunday, Feb. 25 (11 a.m.).
