Xavier University Athletics
Tuesday, April 19
Highland Heights, Ky.
3 P.M.
Xavier University
at
Northern Kentucky
Baseball Faces NKU, Indiana in Midweek Action
04.18.16 | Baseball
Musketeers coming off first BIG EAST series over the weekend
CINCINNATI – Xavier baseball gets back to action with a pair of midweek games on Tuesday and Wednesday, traveling to Northern Kentucky and hosting Indiana.
The Musketeers are 13-24 overall (1-2 BIG EAST) and coming off back-to-back losses to Georgetown, including a walk-off heartbreaker, 4-3, on Sunday.
* Tuesday's game will take place at NKU's Bill Aker Baseball Complex, while Wednesday's game is at Hayden Field.
• Just one year removed from a BIG EAST Championship and a trip to the NCAA Tournament, Xavier is looking to rebound after a frustrating 15-38 (3-15 BIG EAST) season in 2015.
• The Musketeers are off to a 13-24 start, playing 28 of their first 37 away from Hayden Field. The competition has been stiff early, as six of XU's first 10 weekend opponents were 2015 NCAA Tournament teams.
• Head coach Scott Googins is in his 11th season in 2016 with 19 returners, including All-BIG EAST pitcher Trent Astle and BIG EAST Rookie of the Year Nate Soria. Seniors Dan Rizzie and Andre Jernigan were also selected preseason All-BIG EAST.
• Head coach Scott Googins, now in his 11th year at Xavier, surpassed former coach John Morrey for most wins in school history on Friday at Georgetown.
• Googins has 288 wins in his first 10+ seasons, while Morrey had 287 over 12 years (1993-2004).
• Read about some of Coach Googins' biggest accomplishments at Xavier.
• NKU sits at 14-21 overall and 4-11 in the Horizon League. The Norse are 4-8 at home.
• The Norse hit .272 as a team and are led by Logan Spurlin (.339, 6 HR, 27 RBI), Dominic Mercurio (.308, 18 RBI) and Tito Montgomery (.306, 11 RBI). Spurlin has reached base in 19 straight games entering Tuesday.
• NKU's team ERA is 5.86 and Tuesday's starter is Kyle Colletta, who has posted a 6.84 ERA in six appearances (three starts) covering 25 innings.
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• Indiana enters the week at 20-14 and 6-3 in the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers are 5-7 on the road and are coming off a 2-1 weekend against Iowa at home. Prior to a 6-5 loss to the Hawkeyes on Sunday, IU had won eight of nine.
• IU hits .269 as a team led by Ryan Fineman (.318, 3 HR, 16 RBI), Logan Sowers (.316, 7 HR, 14 RBI) and Craig Dedelow (.304, 3 HR, 27 RBI).
• The pitching staff has compiled a glittering 2.78 ERA over 34 games, which ranks 11th amongst NCAA Div. I schools. IU's pitchers also rank amongst the national leaders in WHIP (9th, 1.13), walks allowed per nine (2nd, 2.34) and strikeout-to-walk-ratio (6th, 3.31).
• Xavier ranks 30th in the nation with 34 homers and is 33rd in home runs per game (0.92).
• The Musketeers have homered at least once in 14 of their last 22 games, totaling 25 longballs over that span.
• Andre Jernigan ranks 21st in the nation with 10 longballs, including two on Sunday at Georgetown.
• Joe Gellenbeck ranks 64th in the nation with eight longballs and has homered in eight of XU's 10 weekend series.
• Both have surpassed last year's team leader in homers, Derek Hasenbeck, who hit six in 53 games.
• Xavier has already passed last season's team total of 27 longballs.
• Xavier ranks 70th in the nation with a fielding percentage of .972.
• XU has committed 38 errors in 37 games, including 12 games without an error at all.
• Catcher Dan Rizzie has been a standout behind the plate, throwing out 62 percent (13-for-21) of attempted base stealers with just one error this season.
• Xavier's sweep of Central Michigan from March 18-20 was its second of the season and gave the Musketeers a four-game winning streak for the first time since April 9-13, 2014.
• Xavier's last weekend sweep came at USC Upstate from March 4-6 and snapped a season-opening seven game losing streak.
• Prior to that, XU's last weekend sweep was from April 11-13, 2014 against Villanova at Hayden Field.
• With 68 stolen bases, XU ranks 10th nationally in steals and 14th in steals per game (1.84).
• Xavier stole seven bases in back-to-back games at Mercer, tallying 17 for the weekend series.
• Prior to the Mercer series (Feb. 26-28), the last time Xavier stole seven bases in a game was on March 31, 2015 at Dayton.
• Sophomore Will LaRue ranks 11th in the nation with 22 steals and 19th in the nation with 0.61 steals per game.
• Outside of junior Brad Kirschner, who entered the year with 99.1 career innings pitched, the options for Xavier in the bullpen came into 2016 with a combined 31 appearances and 32.2 innings pitched.• The bullpen options consist of 12 pitchers, but no seniors. Two juniors, four sophomores and six freshmen make up the 'pen.
• Seven arms came into 2016 without a single career appearance. Glass and Makarewicz will be making their respective career debuts when they next take the hill.
• Four true freshmen – Schramm, Williams, Malone and Czabala – all made their Xavier debuts during opening weekend at Arizona State. Matt Kent made his career debut on Friday, March 25 at UC, setting down the Bearcats in 1-2-3 fashion.
• Xavier has just three seniors on the 2016 roster after graduating 14 from its 2015 squad.
• The Musketeers lost 15 letterwinners overall and have 13 newcomers on the 2016 roster.
• Xavier was picked fourth in the BIG EAST preseason coaches' poll, coming in just behind Seton Hall, Creighton and St. John's.
• It's the third straight season the Musketeers have been selected to finish fourth in the poll.
• Senior Andre Jernigan has reached base the hard way at a prolific clip, getting hit by a pitch 11 times in each of the last two seasons. Both seasons are tied for eighth all-time in the XU record book.
• Jernigan has been clipped by a pitch eight times already this season, moving into fourth all-time in XU history in HBP.
• Jernigan's career total of 30 – including two during Xavier's series against ASU and two more against Vandy – is fourth all-time at Xavier, trailing leader Mark Elwell (41 HBP, 2009-13) by 12.
• Sophomore Nate Soria reached via HBP 12 times as a freshman, a mark that was tied for fifth in a single season by a Musketeer.
• Xavier's 22 opponents posted a combined record of 672-565 (.543) in 2015, which averages out to 30.5 wins per team.
• 15 of Xavier's 22 opponents had records of .500 or better last season.
• Xavier faces eight NCAA Tournament teams from 2015, including five in its first six series of the non-conference season.
• The combined 2015 record for XU's first six opponents is 226-140 (.618).
• Eight teams made trips to the 2015 NCAA Tournament, including Arizona State, Mercer, Wright State, Louisville, Morehead State, Indiana, Vanderbilt and St. John's.
• Xavier faces four teams that won at least 41 games in 2015, including Wright State (43), Vanderbilt (51), Louisville (47) and St. John's (41).
• In addition, eight more teams on the schedule posted 30-win seasons in 2015.
• The 2014 NCAA Champions, Vanderbilt advanced to the College World Series again last season before losing to Virginia in the best-of-three series. The Commodores have won at least 51 games in each of the last three seasons.
• The 2016 BIG EAST Tournament will be held in Aberdeen, Md. at Ripken Stadium – home of the Baltimore Orioles Single-A affiliate Aberdeen IronBirds.
• It will be the third different venue in the last three years for the conference tournament after stops in Brooklyn, N.Y. (2014) and Omaha, Neb. (2015).
The Musketeers are 13-24 overall (1-2 BIG EAST) and coming off back-to-back losses to Georgetown, including a walk-off heartbreaker, 4-3, on Sunday.
 | THE MATCHUP |
| Date – Time | Follow Live | Projected Starters |
| Tues., April 19 – 3 p.m. | Stats / NKU Audio / @XavierBASE | RHP Damien Richard vs. RHP Kyle Colletta |
| Weds., April 20 – 3 p.m. | Stats / Video / @XavierBASE | LHP Trent Astle vs. TBA |
* Tuesday's game will take place at NKU's Bill Aker Baseball Complex, while Wednesday's game is at Hayden Field.
| AROUND THE HORN |
• The Musketeers are off to a 13-24 start, playing 28 of their first 37 away from Hayden Field. The competition has been stiff early, as six of XU's first 10 weekend opponents were 2015 NCAA Tournament teams.
• Head coach Scott Googins is in his 11th season in 2016 with 19 returners, including All-BIG EAST pitcher Trent Astle and BIG EAST Rookie of the Year Nate Soria. Seniors Dan Rizzie and Andre Jernigan were also selected preseason All-BIG EAST.
| XU'S WINNINGEST COACH |
• Googins has 288 wins in his first 10+ seasons, while Morrey had 287 over 12 years (1993-2004).
• Read about some of Coach Googins' biggest accomplishments at Xavier.
| SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION |
• The Norse hit .272 as a team and are led by Logan Spurlin (.339, 6 HR, 27 RBI), Dominic Mercurio (.308, 18 RBI) and Tito Montgomery (.306, 11 RBI). Spurlin has reached base in 19 straight games entering Tuesday.
• NKU's team ERA is 5.86 and Tuesday's starter is Kyle Colletta, who has posted a 6.84 ERA in six appearances (three starts) covering 25 innings.
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• Indiana enters the week at 20-14 and 6-3 in the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers are 5-7 on the road and are coming off a 2-1 weekend against Iowa at home. Prior to a 6-5 loss to the Hawkeyes on Sunday, IU had won eight of nine.
• IU hits .269 as a team led by Ryan Fineman (.318, 3 HR, 16 RBI), Logan Sowers (.316, 7 HR, 14 RBI) and Craig Dedelow (.304, 3 HR, 27 RBI).
• The pitching staff has compiled a glittering 2.78 ERA over 34 games, which ranks 11th amongst NCAA Div. I schools. IU's pitchers also rank amongst the national leaders in WHIP (9th, 1.13), walks allowed per nine (2nd, 2.34) and strikeout-to-walk-ratio (6th, 3.31).
| PROJECTED LINEUP |
| Name (Class) | Position | Notes |
| Will LaRue (So.) | Left Field | Ranks fifth on team with a .262 batting average and ranks 11th nationally with 22 stolen bases... third on team with 22 runs scored... |
| Chris Givin (Fr.) | Second Base | Has started at second in 21 of last 23 games... fourth on team with a .271 batting average... has a hit in 10 of his last 13 games... |
| Daniel Rizzie (Sr.) | Catcher | 2016 Preseason All-BIG EAST... missed most of last season with hand injury... has hits in 13 of last 16 games... batting .341 (28-for-82) with five homers in last 21 starts... leads team with 14 multi-hit games... |
| Joe Gellenbeck (Jr.) | First Base | Has homered in eight of XU's 10 weekend series... second on team with eight homers... tied for team lead with 27 RBI... hit first career home run in game two of Feb. 20 doubleheader at ASU... |
| Andre Jernigan (Sr.) | Shortstop | 2016 Preseason All-BIG EAST... leads team and BIG EAST with 10 homers... tied for team lead with 27 RBI... also leads team with eight HBP and 24 runs scored... has made 145 starts at SS in last three-plus seasons... |
| Nate Soria (So.) | Right Field | Led 2015 team in BA (.335), 2B (11) and OBP (.420)... has reached base in 57 of last 67 games going back to 2015... has posted five straight multi-hit games, going 11-for-18 (.611) over that span... |
| Blaine Griffiths (So.) | Designated Hitter | Has started 18 of last 22 games... reached base in 13 of last 18 games... had a career-high three hits on April 3 at Illinois State... third on team with 17 walks... |
| Rylan Bannon (So.) | Third Base | Started season 0-for-16 and is 28-for-92 (.304) with three homers and 10 RBI since... had an 11-game hitting streak snapped last Tuesday at Miami (OH)... has reached base in 15 of his last 16 games... |
| Matt Fallon (Jr.) | Center Field | Transfer from Black Hawk College... has reached base in 31 of 36 games this season, including all three games at Georgetown last weekend... |
| PROJECTED STARTER |
| Day | Name (Class) | Throws | Notes |
| Tues. | Damien Richard (So.) | RHP | Fourth on team with 10 appearances, including seven out of the bullpen and three starts... has made two turns in weekend rotation... started first career game at Wright State (3/8)... has thrown 18.2 innings out of the bullpen, compiling a 2.47 ERA as a reliever... tossed five innings, allowing three runs and striking out three to get the win at Illinois State (4/3)... struggled with command in last start vs. Morehead State, walking six and allowing three runs in 3.2 innings... |
| Weds. | Trent Astle (Jr.) | LHP | 2015 All-BIG EAST Second Team... off to a slow start with a 8.74 ERA in eight starts... fourth on team with 35 innings pitched... |
| BULLPEN |
| Name (Class) | Throws | Notes |
| Garrett Schilling (So.) | RHP | Tied for team lead with 14 appearances... second on team with a 1.59 ERA... had a streak of 16.2 innings without an earned run snapped on Sunday at Georgetown... Earned back-to-back saves in games two and three at USC Upstate and leads XU with five saves... put up a career-high three innings of one-run relief in game four at ASU... |
| Brandon Johnson (So.) | RHP | Allowed five earned runs in first career start in game three at ASU... tossed a scoreless inning at nationally-ranked Louisville (3/15)... |
| Trey Schramm (Fr.) | RHP | Tied for team lead with 14 appearances... has pitched 1+ innings in 13 of 14 appearances... Threw 1.1 innings of scoreless relief in career debut at ASU... tossed 3.2 innings with four strikeouts in series finale at Mercer... earned first career win in Saturday game at USC Upstate, going three innings and striking out three... tied a season-high with 3.2 innings of scoreless relief on Sunday against Morehead State... pitched 1.2 innings of scoreless relief on Wednesday against UC... has thrown 7.2 straight scoreless innings... |
| Taylor Williams (Fr.) | RHP | Tied for team lead with 14 appearances... sparkled in career debut, striking out six in 2.1 innings of relief at ASU... struck out three in two innings of quality relief at UC last Friday... has turned in back-to-back-back scoreless outings, tossing two innings at Ball State and against Morehead State... went a career-high four innings on Tuesday at Miami, striking out four... |
| Jason Hall (Jr.) | RHP | Made season debut on Sunday at Mercer, tossing 1.1 innings of scoreless relief... threw a scoreless inning at Illinois State (4/1)... |
| Matt Kent (Fr.) | RHP | Leads team with 1.42 ERA in 19 innings... didn't make career debut until March 25 at Cincinnati, but tossed 10.1 innings before allowing an earned run... still has yet to allow an earned run in relief (9 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 8 K)... threw four innings and allowed just one earned run in first career start at Miami (OH) on April 12... spun six innings and allowed just two earned runs at Georgetown on Sunday, striking out three... |
| Greg Jacknewitz (Jr.) | LHP | Has made eight starts and two appearances out of the bullpen... twirled 6.2 innings of two-run ball in first outing at ASU... went six innings and allowed just two runs in a win at USC Upstate (3/5)... struck out five in 2.1 innings of relief on last Wednesday against UC... |
| BOMBS AWAY |
• The Musketeers have homered at least once in 14 of their last 22 games, totaling 25 longballs over that span.
• Andre Jernigan ranks 21st in the nation with 10 longballs, including two on Sunday at Georgetown.
• Joe Gellenbeck ranks 64th in the nation with eight longballs and has homered in eight of XU's 10 weekend series.
• Both have surpassed last year's team leader in homers, Derek Hasenbeck, who hit six in 53 games.
• Xavier has already passed last season's team total of 27 longballs.
| X CAN PICK IT |
• XU has committed 38 errors in 37 games, including 12 games without an error at all.
• Catcher Dan Rizzie has been a standout behind the plate, throwing out 62 percent (13-for-21) of attempted base stealers with just one error this season.
| BUSTING OUT THE BROOMS |
• Xavier's last weekend sweep came at USC Upstate from March 4-6 and snapped a season-opening seven game losing streak.
• Prior to that, XU's last weekend sweep was from April 11-13, 2014 against Villanova at Hayden Field.
| BASE BURGLARS |
• Xavier stole seven bases in back-to-back games at Mercer, tallying 17 for the weekend series.
• Prior to the Mercer series (Feb. 26-28), the last time Xavier stole seven bases in a game was on March 31, 2015 at Dayton.
• Sophomore Will LaRue ranks 11th in the nation with 22 steals and 19th in the nation with 0.61 steals per game.
| YOUNG GUNS IN THE 'PEN |
• Seven arms came into 2016 without a single career appearance. Glass and Makarewicz will be making their respective career debuts when they next take the hill.
• Four true freshmen – Schramm, Williams, Malone and Czabala – all made their Xavier debuts during opening weekend at Arizona State. Matt Kent made his career debut on Friday, March 25 at UC, setting down the Bearcats in 1-2-3 fashion.
| YOUTH MOVEMENT |
• The Musketeers lost 15 letterwinners overall and have 13 newcomers on the 2016 roster.
| BIG EAST PROGNOSTICATIONS |
• It's the third straight season the Musketeers have been selected to finish fourth in the poll.
| TAKING ONE FOR THE TEAM |
• Jernigan has been clipped by a pitch eight times already this season, moving into fourth all-time in XU history in HBP.
• Jernigan's career total of 30 – including two during Xavier's series against ASU and two more against Vandy – is fourth all-time at Xavier, trailing leader Mark Elwell (41 HBP, 2009-13) by 12.
• Sophomore Nate Soria reached via HBP 12 times as a freshman, a mark that was tied for fifth in a single season by a Musketeer.
| 2016 OPPONENT BREAKDOWN |
• 15 of Xavier's 22 opponents had records of .500 or better last season.
• Xavier faces eight NCAA Tournament teams from 2015, including five in its first six series of the non-conference season.
• The combined 2015 record for XU's first six opponents is 226-140 (.618).
• Eight teams made trips to the 2015 NCAA Tournament, including Arizona State, Mercer, Wright State, Louisville, Morehead State, Indiana, Vanderbilt and St. John's.
• Xavier faces four teams that won at least 41 games in 2015, including Wright State (43), Vanderbilt (51), Louisville (47) and St. John's (41).
• In addition, eight more teams on the schedule posted 30-win seasons in 2015.
• The 2014 NCAA Champions, Vanderbilt advanced to the College World Series again last season before losing to Virginia in the best-of-three series. The Commodores have won at least 51 games in each of the last three seasons.
| 2016 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT |
• It will be the third different venue in the last three years for the conference tournament after stops in Brooklyn, N.Y. (2014) and Omaha, Neb. (2015).
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