Game 1:  Friday, April 27  |  6:00 PM (CT)  |  Video  |  Live Stats
Game 2:  Saturday, April 28  |  2:00 PM (CT)  |  Video  |  Live Stats
Game 3:  Saturday, April 28  |  5:00 PM (CT)  |  Video  |  Live Stats

Admission is FREE  |  Game Notes

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University baseball team will square off against the SIUE Cougars this weekend as the Bulldogs begin a seven-game homestand to be held at Joe Lee Griffin Field. The opening game of the series will be held Friday at 6 p.m. (CT), while the teams are slated to play a doubleheader Saturday at 2 p.m. Admission will be free for all three games of the series.
 
Samford (24-17) heads into the weekend looking to bounce back from a four-game losing streak. Since rattling off 13 straight victories, their longest winning stretch in 60 years, the Bulldogs have lost three games at UNCG and dropped a 7-2 decision at No. 19-ranked Auburn on Tuesday.
 
THE LAST TIME OUT
Samford allowed five runs on two hits in the bottom of the fourth inning as the No. 19-ranked Auburn Tigers used the mid-game rally to defeat the Bulldogs in a late-season nonconference contest held at Plainsman Park.
 
The Tigers struck first with a run in the bottom of the first inning. The game remained at 1-0 until the fourth inning when Auburn rallied to score five runs on just two hits in the frame, with the big blow of the game being a two-run homer from freshman Steven Williams. Williams finished the contest 4-for-4 at the plate with two RBI and a run scored.
 
Samford, trailing 7-0 at the time, notched a pair of runs in the top of the sixth inning as sophomores Ayrton Schafer and Ryan Crockett both registered RBI.
 
The Bulldogs' Brooks Carlson, Anthony Mulrine and Schafer all turned in two-hit performances, while Troy Dixon, Austin Edens and Taylor Garris added base hits as well.
 
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW . . .
1)  The Bulldogs' recent 13-game winning streak was their longest in 60 years, when Samford, then known as Howard College, opened the 1958 season with a 17-game streak.
 
2)  Samford's 13-game winning streak was 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.
 
3)  Samford was named NCAA Baseball's Team of the Week on April 16, after finishing the week with a 12-3 victory against No. 21-ranked Auburn, as well as a SoCon sweep of Mercer.
 
4)  Since March 27, Samford owns a 13-4 record and is outscoring its opponents by a total of 122-51.
 
5)  Since March 27, the Bulldogs are also out-hitting their opponents, 187-121, which equates to a .310 - .221 advantage in batting average, including a 15-4 difference in home runs.
 
6)  Samford has defeated two nationally-ranked opponents this season in No. 21 Auburn and No. 22 UCF. The Bulldogs defeated Auburn, 12-3, on April 10, and topped UCF on the road in Orlando, Florida, 5-4, on Feb. 18.
 
7)  This marks the first time that Samford has registered two top-25 wins since 2012.
 
8)  Samford true freshman Samuel Strickland has already been named the SoCon Pitcher of the Week three times this season.
 
9)  The Bulldogs' pitching staff is nationally ranked in the top 35 in four major categories. Samford is currently No. 7 in shutouts (6), No. 10 in fewest hits allowed per nine innings (7.39), No. 15 in WHIP (1.22) and No. 31 in ERA (3.44).
 
10)  Samford's ERA of 3.44 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.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
SIUE (10-29) enters the weekend with hopes of bouncing back from an 8-2 road loss at Western Illinois on Wednesday. The Cougars fell behind, 8-0, in the contest before scoring a pair of runs in the top of the ninth inning. Jordan Ross, SIUE's leadoff hitter and starting shortstop, led the way with a 2-for-5 performance at the plate.
 
The Cougars own a 7-19 record on the road this season and are on the tail end of a seven-game road swing. Last week, SIUE defeated Saint Louis in St. Louis, Missouri, 7-6, before finishing 1-2 in a three-game Ohio Valley Conference series at UT Martin.
 
So far this season, the Cougars are 4-17 in OVC play and are currently listed 11^th out of 11 teams in the league standings.
 
SIUE's leading hitters this season are Brock Weimer and Jordan Ross. They are both hitting .281 this year, while Jared McCunn follows closely at .280. Weimer leads the team with six home runs and 30 RBI this season. Ross is currently pacing the Cougars with 43 hits and six stolen bases.
 
Junior Peyton Cordova-Smith tied SIUE Division I records for hits in a game and RBI in a game last week when he went 5-for-6 with two doubles, two home runs and eight RBI on Saturday at UT Martin.
 
SIUE has struggled at the plate this year, but the offense is showing signs of improvement. The Cougars hit .284 last weekend at UT Martin. SIUE averaged 7.6 runs a game in the three-game series. Already this year, the Cougars have turned 33 double plays, which ranks fourth in the OVC.
 
SAMFORD vs. SIUE - - THE ALL-TIME SERIES
This weekend will mark just the second all-time series between the teams. In 2011, the Bulldogs and Cougars squared off in Birmingham as Samford won two of the three games, 13-1 and 5-2, after dropping the opener, 8-5.
 
THIS WEEKEND'S PITCHING MATCHUPS
 
SAMFORD'S STARTING ROTATION
Friday - - RHP, Cody Shelton, Sr. (Brentwood, Tennessee) - - 2-2 (3.21 ERA)
Saturday (Game 1) - - LHP, Samuel Strickland, Fr. (Birmingham, Alabama) - - 6-1 (1.92 ERA)
Saturday (Game 2) - - TBA
 
SIUE'S STARTING ROTATION
Friday - - RHP Collin Baumgartner, Fr. (Brighton, Illinois) - - 0-1 (8.00 ERA)
Saturday (Game 1) - - RHP Kenny Serwa, Jr. (Chicago, Illinois) - - 2-4 (4.76 ERA)
Saturday (Game 2) - - LHP David Llorens, Fr. (Grayslake, Illinois) - - 0-3 (5.89 ERA)
 
SAMFORD IN THE 2018 NCAA STATISTICAL RANKINGS
 
Team - - - - -
#7 | Shutouts (6)
#10 | Fewest Hits Allowed Per Nine Innings (7.39)
#15 | WHIP (1.22)
#31 | Earned Run Average (3.44)
#41 | Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio (2.54)
#47 | Pitching Strikeouts Per Nine Innings (9.0)
#53 | Times Hit By Pitch (52)
#62 | Sacrifice Bunts (25)
#64 | Fewest Walks Allowed Per Nine Innings (3.56)
#65 | Hits (383)
#85 | Stolen Bases (48)
#96 | Won-Loss Percentage (0.571)
 
Samuel Strickland - - - - -
#8 | WHIP (0.79)
#29 | Fewest Hits Allowed Per Nine Innings (5.75)
#34 | Strikeout-To-Walk Ratio (6.25)
#37 | Fewest Walks Allowed Per Nine Innings (1.39)
#39 | Victories (6)
#41 | Earned Run Average (1.92)
 
Cody Shelton - - - - -
#14 | Games Started (10)
 
Josh Rich - - - - -
#24 | Pitching Appearances (22)
 
Branden Fryman - - - - -
#34 | Sacrifice Bunts (8)
 
Anthony Mulrine - - - - -
#45 | Hit By Pitch (12)
 
QUICK NOTES
- - - Branden Fryman's father, Travis Fryman, played 13 years in Major League Baseball for the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians. He is currently a hitting instructor for the Cleveland Indians farm system. He also managed the Mahoning Valley Scrappers from 2008 to 2010.
 
- - - Samford's Wyatt Burns is the SoCon's active leader in saves with 26. The Bulldogs' senior closer is also the conference's SoCon's active career leader in earned run average (2.46), lowest opponent batting average (.209), fewest hits allowed per nine innings (6.82) and appearances (97).
 
- - - Two years ago, Samford's Edens powered 19 home runs and finished the year ranked eighth in the nation in the category. The Bulldogs' powerful senior first baseman is the school's all-time home run hitter with 50 and is also ranked first on the NCAA's Division I active career leader's list as well.
 
EDENS IN THE RECORD BOOK
Samford's Edens, who is the school's all-time home run leader with 50 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), 50
2. Heath Quinn (2014-16), 44
 
ALL-TIME RUNS BATTED IN
1. Heath Quinn (2014-16), 181
2. Austin Edens (2015 - current), 179
 
ALL-TIME TOTAL BASES
1. Austin Edens (2015 - current), 448
2. Heath Quinn (2014-16), 425
 
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), 45
 
WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?
Following this weekend's nonconference home series against SIUE, the Samford University baseball team will next be in action Tuesday at 6 p.m. (CT) as the Bulldogs welcome the UAB Blazers to Joe Lee Griffin Field for a crosstown-rivalry showdown.
 
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 27  |  6:00 PM (CT)  |  Video  |  Live Stats
Game 2:  Saturday, April 28  |  2:00 PM (CT)  |  Video  |  Live Stats
Game 3:  Saturday, April 28  |  5:00 PM (CT)  |  Video  |  Live Stats

Admission is FREE  |  Game Notes