BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford Baseball Team will welcome the Kansas Jayhawks to Joe Lee Griffin Field for a three-game nonconference series, beginning with a Thursday, May 11 series opener at 4:00 p.m. (CST).
The Bulldogs (27-21, 12-6 SoCon) took two of three games at home this past weekend against Western Carolina to remain tied with Mercer atop the Southern Conference Standings.
This will be the third series between Samford and Kansas, with the Bulldogs holding a 4-2 advantage in the brief history between the two teams.
Most recently, the Bulldogs took two of three games in Lawrence, Kan. on March 24-26 of the 2017 season. Samford also won two of three meetings in the inaugural series between the two teams in Homewood on April 23-24 of the 2016 campaign.
The Bulldogs are scheduled to start Jacob Cravey in game one, Brody Westbrooks in game two, and Will Lynch in game three. Cravey comes into the weekend leading the SoCon and ranking fifth in the country with 98 strikeouts, needing just three more to reach 200 for his career four more to into third place in program history for career strikeouts.
Samford comes into the week ranking second in the conference in home runs (77) doubles (90) and slugging percentage (.497).
The Bulldog pitching staff leads the SoCon with 421 strikeouts and 13 saves.
Jayden Davis (1.060), John Anderson (1.054), Stephen Klein (1.049), and Lucas Steele (1.023) all sports an OPS of over 1.000, with Anderson leading the SoCon in homers (17) and ranking third in RBI (50). Davis, who is riding the momentum of a program-record 31-game hitting streak, leads the Bulldogs and ranks sixth in the SoCon with a .374 batting average.
The Jayhawks (22-26, 7-14 Big 12) dropped two of three home contests to #27 Texas this past weekend. The Bulldogs will be Kansas's third Southern Conference opponent faced this season, having taken on both Western Carolina (March 10) and The Citadel (March 17-19) earlier this year.
Kodey Shojinaga ranks second in the Big 12 with a .389 batting average while Chase Jans has driven in a team-best 46 runs with a .339 average.
Collin Baumgartner leads the Jayhawks on the mound with 62 strikeouts in 64.2 innings pitched, to go along with a 5-1 record in 12 starts.
FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS:
For the latest news and information on Samford Baseball, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordBaseball (Facebook), @SamfordBaseball (Instagram),and @SamfordBaseball (Twitter).
