The Lobos (6-1) are on a 5-game win streak and are now ranked 24th in one of the many college baseball polls. If the Lobos are able to sweep Dallas Baptist (5-3), I think that they will start appearing in almost every college baseball poll. These are the sort of series that the team needs to win to have a good shot of making the NCAA Tournament, whether or not they win the conference championship. The Lobos will need great fan support to make it a great home field advantage this weekend.
There are a few things to watch during this three-game series:
- What is the starting rotation for the Lobos in a three-game weekend series? We have some idea that it will be Carson Schneider starting Friday and Tyler Stevens starting Saturday. James Harrington started the Sunday games this last weekend, but will he get the start on Sunday or will Colton Thomson get the nod instead?
- The Lobos continued their great play at home from last year with a sweep of a good Wichita State team. The Lobos have taken advantage of the spacious gaps and great defense to become a great home team.
About the Dallas Baptist Patriots:
Dallas Baptist is a Division II school in every other sport, but in baseball they are a Division I team from the Missouri Valley Conference. You may not know who Dallas Baptist is, but they are a very good baseball program that is coming off a very good season that saw them host a regional. They finished the season with a 46-15 record and are picked to finish second in the MVC this season behind Missouri State. The Patriots are led by 12th year head coach Dan Heefner, and during his time at Dallas Baptist, he has made them into a first-class baseball program and has seen many former players become very good MLB players.
The Patriots are trying to figure out roles on this team, as there was a lot of turnover on the roster after their great season. This early in the season, it is difficult to tell who are going to be the Patriots’ best players. So far this season they are hitting .289 with a .378 on base percentage as a team. After hitting 53 homeruns as a team last year, they have only hit two so far as a team, so they may not have the same power they did.
The real strength for the Patriots comes on the mound, where they return 3rd team All-American Derick Hall and a transfer from the University of Arkansas, Colin Poche. Both pitchers have dominated in their first two starts, allowing only one run between the two. The key to the series will be for the Lobos to get to the Patriots’ bullpen, which was a huge strength last season’s team but has had some struggles so far this season.
Series Prediction:
The Lobos are playing very well so far this season, but this Dallas Baptist will be one of the best teams the Lobos will face this year, featuring two very good starting pitchers. I predict the Lobos will win the series 2-1, splitting the two games with Hall and Poche pitching.
Game Info:
All games played at Santa Ana Star Field
Friday March 4th at 6 PM: (2-0) Carson Schneider vs. (0-0) Colin Poche
Saturday March 5th at 2 PM: (1-0) Tyler Stevens vs. (1-0) Derick Hall
Sunday March 6th at 1 PM: (2-0) James Harrington vs. (1-1) Dalton Higgins
Radio: ESPN Radio 101.7 The Team
Video: LoboTV