Pensacola, Fla. - The ULM baseball team heads to Pensacola, Fla., to play in the Cox Diamond Invitational this weekend. The Warhawks face Tennessee on Friday, Western Kentucky on Saturday and North Florida on Sunday.
Game Notes - Cox Diamond Invitational
The Warhawks are coming off a 15-0 loss in its first mid-week game of the season on Tuesday at Northwestern State. The Demons scored a pair of runs in the third inning and broke the game open with a four-run fourth inning, where they were helped by a pair of ULM errors. Northwestern State put the game out of reach with a seven-run seventh inning.
ULM took two of three meetings with SIUE Sunday and Monday, wrapping the series with a 4-1 win on Monday afternoon at Warhawk Field.
Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello is in his second season with the Volunteers, leading UT to a 29-27 mark in his first season. Vitello served four seasons as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator prior to taking the position at UT. Friday marks the fourth all-time meeting between ULM and Tennessee. The Warhawks and Volunteers met for a three-game series in 2012, with ULM taking the final two of the three meetings in Knoxville. ULM would go on to reach the NCAA Tournament in 2012, its last appearance in a NCAA regional.
Western Kentucky head coach John Pawlowksi is in his sixth season with the Hilltoppers. Pawlowski has previous head coaching tenures at College of Charleston and Auburn. Saturday's game with WKU is the 31st all-time meeting between the Warhawks and Hilltoppers, with WKU holding an 18-12 lead in the series. The two teams met in Sun Belt Conference play from 2007 to 2014. This marks the first meeting between the two clubs since WKU moved to Conference USA.
North Florida head coach Tim Parenton is in his second season with the Ospreys. In his first season Parenton guided the Ospreys to the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament finals before falling to top seed Stetson. Parenton previously served as head coach at Samford from 1998-2003. Sunday's game with North Florida is the first meeting between the two schools.
In Tuesday's mid-week loss to Northwestern State, the Warhawks never advanced a runner past second base while tallying seven hits in the 15-0 Demon win. Beesley was the only Warhawk with two hits and had the lone extra-base hit of the game with a double. The Warhawks struggled on the mound, giving up 15 runs, 12 of those earned, to Northwestern State. However, the Warhawks did come up with 15 strikeouts in the game, led by five from Kolten Childress, who worked 2.1 scoreless innings in relief.
Junior left fielder
Ryan Humeniuk has now hit leadoff in all seven games for ULM. Humeniuk finished 2-for-11 at the plate in the series against SIUE, scoring five runs with three walks over the series. Humeniuk blasted a solo home run to right field in Sunday evening's 12-4 loss to the Cougars for his first home run as a Warhawk. Humeniuk was 0-for-3 against Northwestern State on Tuesday.
Junior right fielder
Trent Tingelstad opened the series against SIUE strong, posting a 3-for-4 game one on Saturday with two RBI, three runs and a walk. Tingelstad hit an RBI double in the four-run third inning, and ignited the three-run seventh inning with a leadoff triple into the right field corner. Tingelstad was a combined 0-for-5 over the final two games of the series with a run scored and four walks. Tingelstad singled in his 1-for-4 day on Tuesday at Northwestern State.
Senior third baseman
Chad Bell extended his career-best hitting streak to 11 games in the SIUE series before it was snapped on Tuesday. Bell had one hit in each game while driving in a run, scoring four times, and drawing two walks. Bell's hitting streak dated back to May 13, 2018, spanning the last five games of the 2018 season and the first six games of 2019. Bell was 0-for-4 against Northwestern State Tuesday.
Junior first baseman
Cameron Horton has taken over the team lead in batting average after posting a 3-for-7 series against the Cougars and adding another hit vs. Northwestern State. Horton was 2-for-3 in Sunday's opener with a walk and a run scored. He followed that performance with a double and two walks in the night cap before going 0-for-2 on Monday with an RBI and two walks. He went 1-for-3 Tuesday vs. the Demons.
Senior
Braedon Barrett struggled over the weekend, coming through with a bunt single in Sunday's first game as his only hit of the weekend. Barrett finished 1-for-10 on the series with an RBI, a run scored and a walk. He added another hit in Tuesday's loss at Northwestern State.
Junior
Andrew Beesley has now started all seven games as the designated hitter. Beesley came to the plate four times with the bases loaded between the two games on Sunday, going 3-for-3 with six RBIs in the four plate appearances. Beesley was 3-for-3 in those situations in game one alone with five RBIs. Beesley then added a sacrifice fly in game two. Beesley added another hit in Sunday's first game for his first career four-hit game at ULM. Beesley had the only multi-hit game for ULM at Northwestern State Tuesday, going 2-for-3 with a double.
Junior catcher
Carson Klepzig caught 25.1 of the 27 innings against SIUE over the past two days. Klepzig replaced freshman
Austin Schmitt in the second inning of game two of Sunday's doubleheader when senior starting pitcher
Trey Jeans was removed from the game. Klepzig was 2-for-9 at the plate with two walks. Klepzig caught the first six innings Tuesday, going 0-for-2 at the plate before being replaced by
Logan Wurm for the last three innings.
Junior
Colin Gordon has now started four straight games at shortstop for ULM. Gordon was the only Warhawk with multiple hits in Monday's series finale vs. SIUE, coming through with a 2-for-3 day at the plate with a walk and a run scored. Gordon also added a hit in Sunday's first game. Gordon tallied a hit at NSU on Tuesday.
Junior infielder
Nathan Miranda started all three games at second base vs. SIUE after starting all three games at shortstop on opening weekend. Miranda came through with the go-ahead RBI double in the three-run sixth inning for ULM on Monday against SIUE. Miranda was also 1-for-4 with a walk in the series opener on Sunday.
Junior
Masen Prososki picked up his second start of the season Tuesday, earning the nod at second base. Prososki picked up a hit in three at bats vs. NSU. He entered Sunday's first game as a pinch runner in the bottom of the seventh inning for
Cameron Horton, eventually coming around to score. Prososki stepped to the plate in the eighth inning and drew a bases loaded walk to pick up an RBI and eventually scored a second time.
Freshman catcher
Austin Schmitt made his first career start behind the plate in Sunday's second game, but did not register a plate appearance. Junior catcher
Logan Wurm appeared as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the ninth, connecting for a single to left field. Schmitt and senior first baseman
Brendan Jordan picked up pinch hitting appearances in Tuesday's loss at Northwestern State.
Senior right-handed pitcher
Jacob Barton picked up his first win at ULM in Sunday's first game. Barton threw 5.1 innings, giving up two runs, one earned, on three hits with three walks and six strikeouts. In Sunday's second game, senior left-handed pitcher
Trey Jeans struggled with his command, giving up three runs on a hit and four walks in 1.2 innings. Junior
Kayleb Sanderson earned his first win at ULM on Monday, throwing 7.0 innings with one run on four hits with a walk and seven strikeouts.
Links to live stats for this weekend's games are available at ULMWarhawks.com.
