Game 1:  Friday, April 20  |  5:00 PM (CT)  |  Video (ESPN+)  |  Live Stats
Game 2:  Saturday, April 21  |  2:00 PM (CT)  |  Live Stats
Game 3:  Sunday, April 22  |  Noon (CT)  |  Live Stats

Samford Game Notes  |  SoCon Notes

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The first-place Samford University baseball team will face one of its toughest challenges of the 2018 season this weekend as the Bulldogs travel to face the UNCG Spartans in a crucial three-game Southern Conference series featuring the top two teams in the standings at the UNCG Baseball Stadium.
 
Friday's opening game of the series is slated to begin at 5 p.m. (CT), while Saturday's matchup will start at 2 p.m. Finally, the third game of the critical series will be held Sunday at noon.
 
Samford (24-14, 10-2 SoCon) heads into the weekend as one of the hottest teams in the country. The Bulldogs have won 13 straight games and are coming off a dominant 6-0 road victory at Alabama on Tuesday.
 
THE LAST TIME OUT
Samford starting pitcher Hamp Skinner hurled five shutout innings and only allowed two hits in the contest as the Bulldogs blanked Alabama. He finished with three strikeouts and only walked one batter.
 
Samford continued its trend of scoring early to garner a quick lead. The Bulldogs tallied two runs in the first and added a score in the third inning to jump out to a 3-0 advantage. Samford's Brooks Carlson finished 3-for-4 at the plate with two RBI and a run scored. He also provided the blast of the night as he crushed a full-count offering off the top portion of the scoreboard in deep left field.
 
Additionally, the Bulldogs received multi-hit performances from Troy Dixon and Max Pinto on Tuesday. Dixon went 2-for-5 with two runs scored, while Pinto turned in a 2-for-3 outing with a run and an RBI. Samford's Ayrton Schafer and Anthony Mulrine also added hits and drove in big scores for the Bulldogs.
 
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW . . .
1) Samford's 13-game winning streak is the third longest active streak in the nation, trailing just Tennessee Tech (22) and Michigan (17).
 
2) The Bulldogs' 13-game winning streak is their longest in 60 years, when Samford, then known as Howard College, opened the 1958 season with a 17-game streak.
 
3) Samford's 13-game winning streak is its second longest in school history. The Bulldogs closed out the 1957 campaign with 11 straight victories and then opened 1958 with 17 consecutive wins for a school-record, 28-game stretch.
 
4) Samford is in the midst of a nine-game SoCon winning streak, which is its longest since 2010 when the Bulldogs won 10 straight conference games against College of Charleston, Furman, Davidson and UNCG.
 
5) Samford was named NCAA Baseball's Team of the Week on Monday after finishing last week with a 12-3 victory against No. 21-ranked Auburn, as well as a SoCon sweep of Mercer.
 
6) Since the streak started March 27, Samford is outscoring its opponents by a total of 107-23.
 
7) Since the streak started, the Bulldogs are also out-hitting their opponents, 153-81, which equates to a .329 - .194 advantage in batting average, including a 13-2 difference in home runs.
 
8) The Bulldogs haven't trailed in a game in over 69 innings, dating back to a 2-1 second-inning deficit on the road at The Citadel on April 6.
 
9) Samford has defeated two nationally-ranked opponents this season in No. 21 Auburn and
No. 22 UCF. The Bulldogs defeated Auburn, 12-3, on Tuesday, and topped UCF on the road in Orlando, Florida, 5-4, on Feb. 18.
 
10) This marks the first time that Samford has registered two top-25 wins since 2012.
 
11) Samford true freshman Samuel Strickland has already been named the SoCon Pitcher of the
Week three times this season.
 
12) The Bulldogs' pitching staff is nationally ranked in the top 25 in four major categories. Samford is currently No. 4 in fewest hits allowed per nine innings (7.02), No. 5 in shutouts (6), No. 7 in WHIP (1.17), and No. 19 in ERA (3.18).
 
13) Samford's ERA of 3.18 is the team's lowest since 2011, when the Bulldogs finished the season with a 3.11 mark. Nine members of Samford's 2011 pitching staff were either drafted or played professionally.
 
14) Samford owns a 10-2 record in SoCon play this season and holds a game-and-a-half lead over second-place UNCG (7-2).
 
DOMINANT ON THE MOUND
The Bulldogs' pitching staff has been dominant during the winning streak. Samford is outscoring its opponents 107-23 and has registered two straight shutouts, including three in its last four games. The Bulldogs have only allowed six runs in the last seven outings and are outscoring opponents, 57-6, since April 7, in games against The Citadel, Auburn, Mercer and Alabama.
 
SAMFORD IN THE 2018 NCAA STATISTICAL RANKINGS
 
Team - - - - -
#4 | Fewest Hits Allowed Per Nine Innings (7.02)
#5 | Shutouts (6)
#7 | WHIP (1.17)
#19 | Earned Run Average (3.18)
#32 | Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (2.59)
#46 | Fewest Walks Allowed Per Nine Innings (3.50)
#52 | Pitching Strikeouts Per Nine Innings (9.1)
#52 | Sacrifice Bunts (24)
#68 | Won-Loss Percentage (0.632)
#70 | Times Hit By Pitch (44)
#71 | Hits (349)
#94 | Home Runs (27)
#95 | Stolen Bases (42)
 
Samuel Strickland - - - - -
#3 | WHIP (0.69)
#11 | Fewest Hits Allowed Per Nine Innings (5.01)
#15 | Earned Run Average (1.35)
#19 | Strikeout-To-Walk Ratio (7.50)
#21 | Victories (6)
#24 | Fewest Walks Allowed Per Nine Innings (1.16)
 
Josh Rich - - - - -
#12 | Pitching Appearances (21)
 
Cody Shelton - - - - -
#17 | Games Started (9)
 
Erin Baldwin - - - - -
#50 | Pitching Appearances (19)
 
Branden Fryman - - - - -
#40 | Sacrifice Bunts (7)
 
Anthony Mulrine - - - - -
#49 | Hit By Pitch (11)
 
JUST A FEW MORE TO GO . . .
The Bulldogs' 13-game winning streak is now the second-longest in school history. Samford, then Howard College, closed out the 1957 season with 11 straight wins and then added 17 consecutive victories to open the 1958 campaign for a school-record 28-game streak.
 
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
UNCG (26-10, 7-2 SoCon) enters the weekend with hopes of bouncing back from a tough 11-9 extra-inning loss to Wake Forest on Tuesday. Over the weekend UNCG took the SoCon series from the ETSU Bucs, winning two of three games at the UNCG Baseball Stadium.
 
Last weekend, Friday night starter Matt Frisbee tied a career high by striking out 13 hitters in the win. After falling in the second game of the series, the Spartan offense drove in 12 runs to win game three decisively, 12-3.
 
At the plate, UNCG is led by one of the top hitters in program history. Andrew Moritz leads the team with a .450 average this season and owns a career average of .409. The career average is currently the highest in program history, besting Ryan Gordon's average of .381 by .028. His season average ranks third in the nation and he's second in the country with eight triples on the year.
 
Additionally, Cesar Trejo hits at a .387 average with a 21 extra-base hits. He's driven in a team-high 38 runs and is a perfect 17-for-17 in stolen base attempts this season. Dillon Stewart adds a .333 average and leads the team with seven home runs. The Spartan offense hits at a .320 clip, which is the best in the SoCon and fourth nationally.
 
THIS WEEKEND'S PITCHING MATCHUPS
 
SAMFORD'S STARTING ROTATION
Friday - - RHP, Cody Shelton, Sr. (Brentwood, Tennessee) - - 2-2 (2.98 ERA)
Saturday - - LHP, Samuel Strickland, Fr. (Birmingham, Alabama) - - 6-0 (1.35 ERA)
Sunday - - TBA
 
UNCG'S STARTING ROTATION
Friday - - RHP, Matt Frisbee, Jr. (Candler, North Carolina) - - 7-0 (2.65 ERA)
Saturday - - LHP, Bryce Hensley, Sr. (Asheville, North Carolina) - - 3-2 (4.22 ERA)
Sunday - - TBA
 
SAMFORD PICKED TO FINISH THIRD IN SOCON
Samford was predicted to finish third in the SoCon preseason standings by both the coaches and media as the league headquarters officially released the annual picks. In the coaches' vote, Samford received 43 points and came in third place behind UNCG and Mercer, which both finished tied for first place with 58 points apiece. On the media side, the Bulldogs' 82 points placed third again behind Mercer and UNCG. Mercer garnered the first-place spot with 119 points, while UNCG followed with 114.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following this weekend's huge SoCon road series at UNCG, the Samford University baseball team will next be in action Tuesday at 6 p.m. (CT) as the Bulldogs travel to Auburn, Alabama, for a marquee midweek matchup against the No. 25-ranked Auburn Tigers to be held at Plainsman Park.
 
For quick score updates, breaking news and links to all of your favorite articles featuring the Bulldogs, please follow @SamfordBaseball and @Samford_Sports on Twitter.

Game 1:  Friday, April 20  |  5:00 PM (CT)  |  Video (ESPN+)  |  Live Stats
Game 2:  Saturday, April 21  |  2:00 PM (CT)  |  Live Stats
Game 3:  Sunday, April 22  |  Noon (CT)  |  Live Stats

Samford Game Notes  |  SoCon Notes