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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University baseball team will square off against the Alabama State Hornets for a second time in less than three weeks Tuesday as the Bulldogs look to avenge an earlier 14-4 loss in the annual home-and-home series with a rematch slated to begin at 6 p.m. (CT) at Joe Lee Griffin Field. Admission is FREE.
 
Samford (15-14) enters the contest with a full head of steam and boasts a four-game winning streak. Last week, the Bulldogs posted a lopsided 8-2 road victory at UAB and then earned a huge three-game Southern Conference sweep at Furman. Samford's conference sweep proved to be its first on the road since May of 2016, at The Citadel.
 
On Saturday, Samford defeated Furman, 10-0, to complete its three-game sweep. The Bulldogs jumped all over the Paladins in the contest and held a 6-0 advantage after four innings of play. Samford rallied for five runs on five hits in the third frame and then added a single run in the fourth.
 
Late in the game, the Bulldogs also tacked on a pair of runs in both the sixth and the ninth innings.
 
Freshman Brooks Carlson led Samford offensively with a 3-for-5 performance at the plate. He also scored three runs in the contest and improved his batting average on the season to a team-high mark of .320. The Bulldogs' Branden Fryman drove in a game-high three RBI and finished 2-for-5 at the dish.
 
Once again, Samford's pitchers proved to be the stars Saturday. Junior Stephen Jones started the game and hurled seven full innings of two-hit baseball. The Bulldogs' talented right-hander from Tallahassee, Florida, struck out a pair of Furman hitters in the contest and lowered his season ERA to 4.04.
 
Alabama State (14-12) heads into Tuesday's showdown having won back-to-back conference series and finds itself just one game back in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) East Division.
 
The Hornets enter the in-state contest hitting .267 as a team, including 54 extra-base hits. As a team, Alabama State has collected 230 total hits that includes 35 doubles, five triples and 14 home runs. They will put those numbers up against the Bulldogs' Hamp Skinner (3-1, 4.62 ERA) Tuesday, as Samford sends the lefthander to the mound.
 
The Hornets, as a staff, have a 3.83 earned run average through 26 games and have recorded 215 strikeouts to just 88 walks. They will face a Samford team hitting .245 as a team with 237 hits that include 38 doubles, three triples and 16 home runs. Channing Walker (0-1, 7.88 ERA) will toe the rubber for Alabama State in the contest.
 
Ray Hernandez leads the Hornets in hitting through the first 26 games of the season, hitting .348 with 17 runs scored and a team-high 24 runs batted in. He also has five doubles and seven home runs on the season. Joseph Estrada is hitting .330 on the year with a team-high three triples, while Noel Cheneau is hitting .310 with a team high nine stolen bases.
 
IN THE LAST MATCHUP BETWEEN THE TEAMS
On March 14, Samford had its seven-game winning streak against Alabama State snapped as the Bulldogs suffered a 14-4 road loss held at ASU's Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex.
 
The defeat proved to be the first in the series for Samford since March 18, 2014, when the Bulldogs were topped at home, 23-7.
 
In the eight-inning road loss to Alabama State, Samford committed five costly errors. The Hornets scored 14 runs on 12 hits, including a two-run, game-winning home run to left-center field from Hunter Allen in the bottom of the eighth.
 
Four of Alabama State's 14 runs proved to be unearned. The Hornets scored 10 runs in the final three innings of play.
 
After four full innings, Samford held a 4-3 advantage in the game. The Bulldogs were also tied at 4-4 with Alabama State heading into the sixth.
 
Samford's Ayrton Schafer and Blaine Smith registered two-hit performances in the game, while Troy Dixon, Fryman, Anthony Mulrine, Max Pinto and Mason Williamson also added base hits. The Bulldogs finished the contest with four runs on nine hits.
 
Alabama State's Ivanniel Vazquez registered the complete-game win as he tallied 10 strikeouts in eight innings of action. Samford's Josh Rich was issued the loss. The Bulldogs' senior right-hander allowed five runs on two hits, but only a pair of the five runs were earned. Rich registered four strikeouts in two innings.
 
BULLDOGS' RECORD AGAINST ALABAMA STATE - - THE DUNN ERA
Since Head Coach Casey Dunn took the reins to the Bulldogs' baseball program in 2004, Samford has compiled a 7-2 record against Alabama State.
 
Last season, the teams squared off twice in a home-and-home series with the Bulldogs winning both of the matchups. On March 8, 2017, Samford earned a 10-7 road victory in Montgomery before coming back home to notch a 14-4 win against the Hornets in a duel held in Birmingham on April 26.
 
TUESDAY'S PITCHING MATCHUP
Samford - - LHP, Hamp Skinner, So. (Jacksonville, Florida) || 3-1 (4.62 ERA)
Alabama State - - RHP, Channing Walker, Fr. (Decatur, Georgia) || 0-1 (7.88 ERA)
 
BULLDOGS' MULRINE NAMED TO JOHNNY BENCH AWARD WATCH LIST
Samford's Mulrine was officially named to the Watch List for the 2018 Johnny Bench Award, it was announced March 7, by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission.
 
Samford's talented sophomore catcher from Davie, Florida, owns a .252 batting average this season to go along with five home runs and a team-high 20 RBI. He has already started in 28 games and added 17 runs and 22 walks. Last season, Mulrine earned SoCon All-Freshman Team honors and led the conference in throwing out potential base-stealers with 27.
 
Mulrine is listed among the nation's elite catchers on the Johnny Bench Award Watch List. Joining him on the prestigious listing are Texas A&M's Cole Bedford, Arkansas' Grant Koch, Texas' DJ Petrinsky, Florida State's Cal Raleigh, Louisville's Pat Rumoro, Arizona's Cesar Salazar and Florida's JJ Schwarz, among others.
 
EDENS IN THE RECORD BOOK
Samford's Austin Edens, who is the school's all-time home run leader with 47 round-trippers, is already one of the most decorated players in school history. He is currently ranked among the top five hitters in a number of statistical categories, including home runs, RBI, total bases and doubles.
 
ALL-TIME HOME RUNS
1. Austin Edens (2015 - current), 47
2. Heath Quinn (2014-16), 44
 
ALL-TIME RUNS BATTED IN
1. Heath Quinn (2014-16), 181
2. Austin Edens (2015 - current), 164
 
ALL-TIME TOTAL BASES
1. Heath Quinn (2014-16), 425
2. Austin Edens (2015 - current), 421
 
ALL-TIME DOUBLES
1. Bear Burnett (2005-08), 52
2. Heath Quinn (2014-16), 48
3. Phillip Ervin (2011-13), 47
4. Hunter Swilling (2014-16), 46
5. Austin Edens (2015 - current), 43
 
EDENS LEADS NCAA IN ACTIVE CAREER HOME RUNS
 
RANK, PLAYER, CL, POS, GAMES, HR
1. Austin Edens, Samford, Sr., 1B, 196, 47
2. JJ Schwarz, Florida, Sr., C, 234, 44
2. Jesus Santana, Jackson State, Sr., INF, 190, 44
4. Seth Beer, Clemson, Jr., UT, 151, 42
5. Trey Truitt, Mercer, Sr., OF, 190, 40
6. Chase Chambers, Tennessee Tech, Sr., 1B, 182, 39
7. Jeremy Eierman, Missouri State, Jr., INF, 145, 37
8. Kevin Strohschein, Tennessee Tech, Jr., OF, 140, 36
8. Collin Fleischer, VMI, Sr., 1B, 163, 36
10. Chandler Taylor, Alabama, Jr., OF, 133, 34
 
BULLDOGS DEFEAT #22 UCF
Samford's victory over No. 22-ranked UCF on Feb. 18, proved to be its first win over a top-25 ranked opponent since June 6, 2012, when the Bulldogs defeated No. 17 Mississippi State, 3-2, for the second time in two days and knocked the Bulldogs out of the Florida State Regional in the NCAA Tournament.
 
DID YOU KNOW?
Under the tutelage of Dunn, Samford is the winningest Division I program in the state of Alabama since 2011, and the Bulldogs have had 22 players selected in the MLB Draft over the last seven years.
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following Tuesday's home showdown with Alabama State, the Samford University baseball team will next be in action Friday at 5 p.m. (CT) as the Bulldogs begin a three-game SoCon road series against The Citadel Bulldogs in Charleston, South Carolina.
 
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