April 12, 2012

Game Notes

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford baseball team will travel to Charleston, S.C., to take on the College of Charleston in a key Southern Conference series this weekend. The teams will play Friday at 5 p.m. (CT), Saturday at 2 p.m. (CT) and Sunday at 12 p.m. (CT).

College of Charleston enters the weekend in a tie for second place in the SoCon standings at 12-6 in league play. Samford currently sits in fourth place, a game and a half behind the Cougars at 9-6 in SoCon games.

The series will be a matchup of the top two pitching staffs in the SoCon. Charleston leads the league with a 2.70 ERA, while Samford ranks second in the SoCon with a team ERA of 3.64. The teams are also the top two home-run hitting teams in the league. Charleston leads the SoCon with 37 home runs as a team, while Samford is second, having belted 34 homers.

The Bulldogs enter the weekend with a record of 20-13 overall so far this season. Samford lost at Auburn, 7-5, on Tuesday after winning two-of-three games from The Citadel over the weekend.

Samford is led offensively by Saxon Butler, batting .383 with six home runs and 29 RBI. Phillip Ervin is batting .360 with six home runs and 31 RBI. Brandon Miller leads the team and the SoCon in home runs with 12 and in RBI with 39. Miller is tied for second in the nation in home runs and he is tied for eighth in the country in RBI.

Samford is scheduled to start Charles Basford on the mound in the series opener on Friday. Basford is tied for second in the SoCon in innings pitched at 54, and he is tied for fifth in the league in wins with a 5-0 record. Basford has an ERA of 3.17.

The Bulldogs have listed Josh Martin as their starting pitcher for Saturday's game. Martin is tied for the Southern Conference lead in wins with a 6-1 record so far this season. Martin has 18 career wins, tying him for the school record in that category. Martin has an ERA of 3.26.

Samford has listed Kyle Putkonen as its starting pitcher for Sunday's series finale. Putkonen has a record of 2-4 so far this season, and he enters the weekend with an ERA of 4.60.

The Cougars are currently 23-11 overall this season. Charleston defeated Winthrop, 16-3 on Tuesday, after losing two-of-three games to Appalachian State over the weekend.

Charleston is led at the plate by Marty Gantt, batting .383 with six home runs and 27 RBI. Brandon Murray is batting .314 with nine home runs and 20 RBI.

College of Charleston has listed left-hander Josh Renfro (4-3, 3.75 ERA) as its starting pitcher for Friday's series opener. Christian Powell (6-1, 1.89 ERA) will start Saturday's game for the Cougars, while Matt Pegler (5-2, 2.70 ERA) is scheduled to start Sunday's series finale on the mound.

All three games this weekend can be heard locally on WVSU-FM 91.1, or worldwide on the internet at www.samford.edu/wvsu. Fans can also follow all three games online via GameTracker through links at www.samfordsports.com.