Alabama Baseball to Host Southern Miss for Tuesday Midweek Contest
2/20/2017 3:10:00 PM | Baseball
The Crimson Tide and Golden Eagles will meet for the 104th time in series history on Tuesday night
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama hosts Southern Miss for a single midweek contest, the lone meeting between the two programs this season. The Crimson Tide and Golden Eagles are set for a 6 p.m. CT start at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. Tuesday's game will air live on SEC Network+ with Eli Gold and Lance Cormier on the call.
FOLLOW THE TIDE
Fans can follow the Tuesday game via the below outlets:
Watch: SEC Network+
Listen: 102.9 FM / CTSN / TuneIn App
Twitter: @AlabamaBSB
Live Stats: RollTide.com
LEADING OFF
• Southern Miss comes into the midweek matchup after a three-game sweep of Northeastern this past weekend in which USM outscored NEU by a margin of 31-12. The Golden Eagles finished 2016 with an impressive 41-20 record (20-10 Conference USA) and advanced to an NCAA Regional. USM won the Conference USA Tournament before finishing 1-2 in the Tallahassee Regional.
• Alabama and Southern Miss will meet for the 104th time in series history with the Crimson Tide holding a 72-31 advantage in the series, including a 45-13 mark at home. Despite trailing in the overall series, USM has won four consecutive matchups and six of the last 10 pairings.
• The Crimson Tide will send sophomore right-hander Brock Love to the hill. The right-hander finished his first season in Tuscaloosa with a 3.30 ERA (11 ER/30.0 IP), making 11 total appearances including four starts. He did not factor into the decision in any of his outings and maintained an impressive 33/8 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Love pitched in Friday's season opener, throwing 4.0 innings and striking out five to claim his first career save.
• The Golden Eagles counter with junior right-hander Taylor Braley. The righty has yet to pitch this season, but finished the 2016 campaign with only one appearance in which he tossed 0.1 of an inning. Braley also played in the field last season, finishing with a.323 average across 27 games of play, all were starts.
• Tuesday's game will be the Crimson Tide's first "Taco Tuesday" of the 2017 season. Each Tuesday, fans can purchase a "Taco Tuesday" pass for only $10. That pass includes a game ticket along with admission to the taco and salsa bar on the Third Base Patio. Tickets to the "Taco Tuesday" promotion are limited to only 200 people, so fans are encouraged to act fast before they are all sold out.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUP
UA – Brock Love (So., RHP) vs. USM – Taylor Braley (Jr., RHP)
SCOUTING ALABAMA
• The Crimson Tide finished out opening weekend at 2-1, taking the first two games and the series over Presbyterian before falling to the Blue Hose on Sunday afternoon.
• Friday's home opener saw the Alabama duo of Nick Eicholtz and Brock Love hold off Presbyterian for the 4-3 win. The victory was head coach Greg Goff's first ever at Alabama. Eicholtz earned the win with 5.0 innings of three-run baseball (two earned) on three hits with no walks and three strikeouts. Love followed with 4.0 shutout innings and five strikeouts to earn his first career save.
• The Tide's top four hitters in the order highlighted the offense on opening night, batting a combined 7-for-15. Leadoff man Chandler Avant finished 2-for-5 with an RBI and a team-high two runs scored. Cobie Vance followed with a 2-for-4 night while contributing an RBI. No. 3 hitter Hunter Alexander reached base safely on four occasions, going 2-for-2 with a run scored, a walk and a hit-by-pitch. The cleanup role was filled by Chandler Taylor, who finished 1-for-4 with a triple and a team-high two RBI.
• Four home runs powered the Alabama offense to an 8-1 win on Saturday to help the Crimson Tide claim the series win over Presbyterian. The heart of the order paced the Tide with the three, four and five hitters finishing 8-for-13. Taylor led UA, finishing 2-for-4 with a pair of home runs and contributed a team-high four RBI and two runs scored. No. 3 hitter Vance tied for a team-high with three hits that included a double, while adding an RBI and a run scored. Alexander, who went 3-for-5 with a home run, one RBI and a run scored, notched his first home run of his Crimson Tide career, going back-to-back with Taylor in the Tide's five-run fourth inning.
• Jake Walters provided a strong start on Saturday, striking out seven across his 6.0 innings of work to collect his first win of the season. He tossed 75 pitches and managed to limit the Blue Hose to just three hits before handing the ball over to the pen. Sam Finnerty and Sonny Potter finished the final three innings, combining for five strikeouts to help the Tide get the Saturday win and the series.
• Sunday's back-and-forth contest fell in favor of Presbyterian, 4-3. Dylan Duarte made his first career start, setting down the first 12 batters in order before allowing three hits and two runs in the fifth inning.
• The offense in the finale was highlighted by sophomore Kyle Kaufman and Gene Wood, who led the Tide in hitting with two hits apiece. Kaufman finished his day 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Wood went 2-for-4 with a run scored. Taylor contributed a solo home run to homer in back-to-back contests for the third time in his career.
• The Crimson Tide returned to its home at Sewell-Thomas Stadium in 2016 after spending 2015 on the road while the Tide's home stadium was undergoing renovations. Alabama finished with a 19-12 home record at the new Joe compared to a 13-14 record in road and neutral-site contests.
• Alabama's roster features 20 letterwinners from the 2016 squad that reached the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala. The 2017 Tide returns five positional starters and three starting pitchers while welcoming 16 newcomers.
SERIES HISTORY – SOUTHERN MISS
• Alabama and Southern Miss will meet for the 104th time in series history with the Crimson Tide holding a 72-31 advantage in the series, including a 45-13 mark at home.
• The Golden Eagles have won four straight in the series and six of the last 10 matchups.
• UA is 7-3 in the last 10 home meetings against the Southern Miss. The most recent matchup at "home" came in Hoover in 2015, when USM claimed a 6-2 win in a rain-shortened, seven-inning affair.
• Head coach Greg Goff owns a 2-3 record for his career against Southern Miss.
ON DECK
Alabama will remain in Tuscaloosa once again, hosting Oral Roberts for a three-game series from Feb. 24-26. Friday's series opener is scheduled for a 5 p.m. CT start with Saturday's contest set for a 2 p.m. CT first pitch. The series finale on Sunday is slated to begin at 1 p.m. CT. The Crimson Tide and Golden Eagles have faced off just once, with the lone meeting coming on March 11, 2012, as part of the DRASH Alabama Baseball Classic in Tuscaloosa. ORU came away with a 3-2 win in that game.
