JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – South Atlantic Conference play rolls along as Carson-Newman makes the trip to Newberry for a three-game series starting Friday night at 6 p.m. at the Smith Road Complex before concluding the slate with a doubleheader Saturday with the first pitch at 1 p.m.
"Coach [Russell] Triplett is outstanding," Carson-Newman coach Tom Griffin said. "His teams are always well-coached, play with energy and discipline. Everything that you fear for in a group, this group brings it. We know that they are going to put pressure on us. We know that they are going to play very good defense. We know that they play very well in their home park."
Carson-Newman (10-13, 2-4) and Newberry (13-12, 2-4) have met 66 times on the diamond prior to this weekend with the series slanted heavily in favor of the home team. While the Eagles are 29-5 at home against the Wolves, C-N is just 10-13 on the road while losing four straight contests in the Palmetto State since an 8-1 win on April 6, 2013. The program has won just three series at Newberry coming in 2004, 2008 and 2013 while being swept in 2011 and 2015.
In 2016, the Eagles won three games against the Wolves including in the SAC Championships, a 3-0 contest. It was the first time in 22 games that C-N blanked a team in tournament action when they shutout Wingate 4-0 on April 22, 2007.
Vince Apicella threw 15 shutout innings of baseball across two starts against the Wolves striking out 15 while allowing 10 hits. In the four games, Ryan Addington went 5-for-16 with four RBIs and three runs scored while Cade Snapp went 4-for-15 with five RBIs and drove in the walk-off winner in the second game of the series on April 2.
Newberry was just ahead of Carson-Newman in third place in the preseason SAC coaches' poll as one of four teams to earn a first-place vote after a fifth-place spot in the standings a year ago. The Wolves did not have a member of the first team in 2016 but placed four of its five preseason All-SAC picks on the first squad.
After riding a seven-game winning streak, Newberry has dropped four of its last six games including being swept at Tusculum last weekend giving up at least seven runs in each game of the series.
The Wolves are the definition of the term small ball having hit just five home runs this season. The club is fourth in the country in sacrifice bunts with 26, ninth in walks with 114 leading to an on-base percentage of .399 and 20th in stolen bases with 39. Six regulars have at least three swiped bags this year led by Daymon Totherow's 10, third in the SAC.
On the mound, the pitching staff yields the fewest walks in the league and ninth-fewest in the nation with 2.54 per nine innings. Foes are piling up just shy of 10 hits per game as Newberry ranks third in the league.
Coach Russell Triplett's group boasts a 9-3 record at home compared to a 3-9 mark on the road. The group is hitting .353 at home scoring 133 runs (11.1 per game) compared to a .260 average on the road and 61 runs (5.1). The hurlers have allowed 83 runs on the road compared to just 45 at home.
Preseason first-team All-SAC pitcher Zack Kelly is 3-2 this season despite a 1.96 ERA. Prior to his last outing at Tusculum when he yielded five earned runs the right-hander gave up three earned in his first 31 innings.
The team has four players with 20 RBIs or more so far on the year led by Trejon Smith's 31 as the senior is hitting .385 with a home run and 10 doubles.
The Eagle Sports Network provides the broadcast coverage all weekend starting 15 minutes prior to the first pitch on cneagles.com/live with "The Appalachian Electric Cooperative Countdown to First Pitch".
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