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#2 Samford vs. #7 Furman - - Wednesday, May 23 - - 3 p.m. (CT)

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GREENVILLE, S.C. -- The Samford University baseball team will begin its quest for a Southern Conference Tournament title and an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday at 3 p.m. (CT) as the Bulldogs square off against the Furman Paladins in an opening-round matchup to be held at Fluor Field.
 
Samford (32-24, 16-8 SoCon) enters the tournament as the No. 2 seeded team in the field. The Bulldogs have been victorious in seven of their last 10 outings, including a recent four-game winning streak that featured a pair of wins against both Western Carolina and VMI.
 
Furman (24-26, 9-12 SoCon) begins the SoCon Tournament as the No. 7 seed. Last week, the Paladins didn't play a single game in their final conference series of the regular season, a three-game set against first-place UNCG, due to rain and unplayable field conditions.
 
On May 12-13, Furman earned a pair of victories against ETSU on the road in Johnson City, Tennessee, 6-5 and 9-4.
 
SAMFORD vs. FURMAN
During the regular season, the Bulldogs played to a three-game sweep at Furman from March 29-31. Samford earned close victories of 4-3 and 4-2 in the first two contests, before exploding for a 10-0 triumph in the finale.
 
The Bulldogs' pitching staff registered a miniscule 1.33 earned run average in the series and only allowed four earned runs. Samford also struck out a total of 25 hitters in the series as Stephen Jones, Wyatt Burns and Samuel Strickland tallied the victories.
 
Offensively, the Bulldogs' Ayrton Schafer turned in a .545 batting average against Furman. He finished 6-for-11 with two runs scored and an RBI. Freshman Brooks Carlson and sophomore Taylor Garris also hit .500 for the weekend with identical 6-of-12 performances. Junior Connor Burns blasted a home run against Furman and turned in a .400 batting average.
 
FLUOR FIELD CLEAR-BAG POLICY
To provide a safer environment for the public and expedite fan entry into Fluor Field, the official stadium policy limits and restricts the size and type of bags that are permitted into the stadium during Drive games, collegiate and high school games, and any other in-stadium public event.

Fans are encouraged not to bring any bags, however, the following will be permitted:  One clear bag no larger than 12" by x 6" x 12" OR a one-gallon clear freezer bag (Ziploc or similar). In addition, fans may carry a small clutch bag or purse no larger than 6.5" x 4.5", with or without a strap. Each ticket holder, including children, may carry an approved clear bag and a clutch purse.
 
SAMFORD IN THE SOCON TOURNAMENT
The Bulldogs own a 19-12 all-time record in SoCon Tournament play. Last season, Samford finished 2-2 in the event with wins against Western Carolina, 6-1, and Mercer, 5-4, but losses to UNCG, 6-3, and ETSU, 16-6. The Bulldogs own a 4-0 record against Furman in SoCon Tournament play.
 
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW . . .
1)  Samford defeated Western Carolina on May 13, 11-4, and reached the 30-win plateau for a fifth straight season, as well as the eighth time in nine years.
 
2)  On May 1, against UAB, Samford's Austin Edens drove in four RBI and set the school's all-time RBI record with a career total of 184. He surpassed former Bulldog-great Heath Quinn, who closed out his Samford career with 181.
 
3)  On May 4, the Bulldogs' senior closer Wyatt Burns earned his eighth save of the season and set the school's all-time record in the category with 28. Samford's senior right-hander surpassed former Bulldog-great Andres Gracia with 27. Burns now owns 10 saves this season and 30 in his career.
 
4)  This year marks the first time in school history that the Bulldogs registered a 13-game winning streak, followed by a seven-game losing streak.
 
5)  The Bulldogs' 13-game winning streak was their longest in 60 years since opening the 1958 season with a 17-game streak.
 
6)  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.
 
7)  Samford was named NCAA Baseball's Team of the Week on April 16, after defeating No. 21 Auburn, as well as a SoCon sweep of Mercer.
 
8)  Since March 27, Samford owns a 21-10 record and is outscoring its foes by a total of 199-116.
 
9)  Since March 27, the Bulldogs are also out-hitting their opponents, 313-238, which equates to a .287 - .230 advantage in batting average.
 
10)  Samford has defeated two nationally-ranked opponents this season in No. 21 Auburn and
No. 22 UCF.
 
11)  This marks the first time that Samford has registered two top-25 wins since 2012.
 
12)  The Bulldogs' pitching staff is ranked in the top 25 in four major categories. Samford is No. 12 .in fewest hits allowed per nine innings (7.57), No. 12 in shutouts (6), No. 12 in WHIP (1.22) and No. 24 in strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.65).
 
13)  Samford's ERA of 3.61 is the team's lowest since 2011, when finishing the season with a 3.11 mark. Nine members of Samford's 2011 pitching staff were either drafted or played professionally.
 
14)  Samford is outscoring opponents, 45-20, in the third inning this season. The Bulldogs also own 29-1 record when leading after six innings.
 
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.
 
- - - Fryman has already tallied 25 stolen bases this season to lead the team. His total is also
Samford's highest since 1999 when Jason Barnette finished the campaign with a school-record
34.
 
- - - Samford's Wyatt Burns is Samford's all-time leader in saves with 30. He is also the SoCon's active leader in saves with as well. The Bulldogs' senior closer is the conference's active career leader in appearances (104) and is ranked second in the league in ERA (2.41), opponent batting average (.194) and fewest hits allowed per nine innings (6.61).
 
- - - 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 51 and is also ranked first on the NCAA's Division I active career leader's list as well.
 
- - - Junior Troy Dixon has been Samford's "Iron Man" this season by starting in all 56 games. Dating back to Feb. 26, 2017, he has started in 109 straight games for the Bulldogs.
 
The winner of Wednesday's contest will advance to the second round of the SoCon Tournament where it will face either No. 3 Wofford or No. 6 ETSU at 6:30 p.m. (CT) on Thursday here at Fluor Field.

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#2 Samford vs. #7 Furman - - Wednesday, May 23 - - 3 p.m. (CT)

Video  |  Live Stats