The University of Memphis baseball team (24-14, 7-5 Conference USA) hosts the Southern Miss Golden Eagles (19-17, 8-4 C-USA) in a crucial three-game series this weekend.
The Tigers have won 10 out of their last 11 games, and look to carry the momentum into the weekend series with the Golden Eagles. Memphis has defeated UAB, Ole Miss and Murray State in the past week.
"We have two of the hottest teams playing this weekend," associate head coach Fred Corral said. "We hope our guys are ready for that challenge."
Southern Miss is in first place in the conference, but sport an average overall record. However, the Golden Eagles come into the series riding an eight-game winning streak and are 9-1 in their last 10 games. Southern Miss has a 4-6 record on the road this season, while the Tigers are 18-10 at home.
"We've started to understand the importance [of] what home turf is," head coach Daron Schoenrock said. "We have to make life uncomfortable for them at home."
The Golden Eagles' starting catcher Chase Fowler is the current C-USA Hitter of the Week, posting a .330 batting average. Fowler went 7-17 with two triples and two walks. He also drove in five runs while scoring five runs. He leads the Southern Miss squad with 19 runs batted in and brings a five-game hitting streak into the series.
The last time the two teams squared off was in the opening round of the C-USA Tournament last May in Pearl, Miss. The Tigers won that game 14-3 in a run-rule-shortened eight-inning game. But many of the Tigers from that team have graduated and moved on.
Southern Miss will send left-handed pitcher Jake Drehoff (1-4, 3.57 ERA) to the mound Friday at 6:30 p.m. Right-hander Andrew Pierce (7-1, 1.83 ERA) toes the mound Saturday at 2 p.m. and right-hander Conor Fisk (3-1, 2.38 ERA) will pitch the series finale Sunday at 1 p.m.
"Two-thirds of their starting pitching is back," Schoenrock said. "Their all-conference pitcher is back, and most of their line-up."
The Tigers come into the series tied for third in the conference, but winning the series could propel them into first. Tigers' pitchers have thrown back-to-back shutouts and have the lowest earned run average in the conference, ranking 21st nationally. Memphis leads, or is near the top, in every major pitching category in the conference.
Memphis' bats are also coming around, leading the conference in batting average with a .280 mark. The Tigers are second in the conference in hits and runs scored this season and are near the top in almost every major batting category as well.
"Their solid weekend rotation is going to be the challenge for our young hitters," Schoenrock said.
The Tigers will throw three southpaws this weekend against the Golden Eagles. Sam Moll (6-2, 2.59 ERA) gets the nod Friday night. Moll is 10 strikeouts shy of cracking into the top 10 in Memphis history.
Erik Schoenrock (5-2, 2.03 ERA) threw a complete game against UAB in his last start and his second on the season. Schoenrock is matched up against Pierce, who is one of the most dominant pitchers in the conference. Alex Gunn (2-2, 2.30 ERA) is slated for the finale on Sunday.
Tom III will be at the game Friday night, and on Saturday afternoon, the U of M will retire the jersey of former Tiger Mike Dlugach. The series will be played at FedExPark.
