ULM Warhawks

MONROE, La. - The ULM baseball team concludes the regular season with a three-game series against Arkansas State at Warhawk Field. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on Thursday and Friday with the series finale at 1 p.m. Saturday. Both ULM and Arkansas State are still in contention for a spot in next week's Sun Belt Conference Championship at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery, Alabama.

All three games of this weekend's series are available to watch on ESPN+ and will air on 105.7 FM/540 AM KMLB, KMLB.com and the TuneIn app with Mike Hammett on the call for both broadcasts. A link to live stats for each game is available on the baseball schedule page at ULMWarhawks.com.

Thursday's game is the 78th all-time meeting between ULM and Arkansas State. The Red Wolves lead the series, 42-35. Last season, ULM won two out of three games in Jonesboro to close the regular season. After A-State won the Thursday night game, 12-6, ULM bounced back with a 10-7 win on Friday and a 6-4 win on Saturday to finish third in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. The Warhawks have won the last three series against the Red Wolves. ULM took two-out-of-three games in Jonesboro in 2019. The last time at Warhawk Field, ULM won the series opener, 2-0, and the series finale, 4-0, while A-State won the middle game, 31-7.

ULM (16-34-1 overall, 6-20-1 Sun Belt Conference) has lost nine consecutive Sun Belt Conference games after dropping all three games at South Alabama last weekend. ULM lost Friday night's game, 12-4, before dropping Saturday's contest, 3-1, and Sunday's game, 4-2. The Warhawks enter this weekend's series vs. Arkansas State in 11th place in the SBC standings. The Warhawks are one-half game behind UT Arlington 10th place and one full game ahead of Arkansas State. The top 10 teams in the SBC standings advance to the SBC Championship at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery, Alabama. The Warhawks are hitting .262 as a team with 235 RBIs, while the pitching staff has posted an ERA of 6.09.

ULM head coach Michael Federico is in his fifth season with the Warhawks. After leading the club to an 11-win improvement in his first year and a two-win improvement in his second year, he led the Warhawks to their first .500-or-better season since 2012 with a 26-26 mark in 2021 as ULM finished third in the Sun Belt Conference West Division. Federico is 6-3 against Arkansas State.

Arkansas State (11-35, 5-21) has lost seven consecutive Sun Belt Conference games after falling in all three contests against Georgia State in Jonesboro last weekend. Georgia State won 10-2 last Friday, 7-4 on Saturday and 5-4 on Sunday. The Red Wolves dropped all three games at South Alabama from May 6-8, and lost the final game of a series at UT Arlington on May 1. A-State won SBC series against Troy and Little Rock. The Red Wolves are hitting .242 as a team with 196 RBIs while posting a team ERA of 6.31.

Arkansas State coach Tommy Raffo is in his 14th season with the Red Wolves. He has had 16 players drafted since his arrival in 2009 with 21 players reaching the minor leagues. He was the only coach to win two games at the Sun Belt Conference Championship each season from 2010-2017. Raffo is 22-15 against ULM.

WARHAWKS SWEPT AT SOUTH ALABAMA
ULM lost all three games over the weekend at South Alabama, falling 12-4 on Friday, 3-1 on Saturday and 4-2 on Sunday at Stanky Field in Mobile. The Warhawks have now lost nine consecutive Sun Belt Conference games and 12 of the last 13 games in SBC action to fall to 16-34-1 overall and 6-20-1 in the SBC.

On Friday, ULM jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning with RBIs from Mason Holt, Colby Deaville and Landon Cato. USA scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning on an error. The Warhawks extended the lead to 4-2 on Holt's solo home run in the top of the third. South Alabama used a hit batter, single and wild pitch to pull within a run in the fourth. USA surged ahead in the fifth inning, scoring four runs on just two hits. They added two more runs in the sixth and seventh innings before tacking on another in the eighth to pull away for the 12-4 win. USA's JoJo Booker pitched five innings of scoreless and hitless relief for the win.

On Saturday, USA took a 2-0 lead in the third inning using a solo homer by Carter Sanford and a two-out RBI single by Miles Simington. The Warhawks cut the deficit in half in the fifth inning when Ryan Cupit scored on Grant Schulz's RBI fielder's choice. USA extended the lead to 3-1 in the bottom of the fifth on Simington's second two-out RBI single of the night. Jackson Boyd threw 4 2/3 shutout innings, allowing two hits, out of the bullpen for the win.

On Sunday, South Alabama jumped on top in the bottom of the first inning with a two-out RBI double by Landon Jordan. The lead jumped to 3-0 in the fifth when Joseph Sullivan scored on an error and Erick Orbeta added an RBI single. ULM pulled within a run in the seventh when Matthew Lee connected for an RBI double and Trace Henry hit a sacrifice fly. Orbeta hit his second RBI single of the day in the bottom of the seventh to push the lead to 4-2. Walker Johnson allowed two runs over six innings for the win.

SEVEN WARHAWKS TO BE HONORED ON SENIOR WEEKEND
ULM will honor seven seniors prior to Saturday's game against Arkansas State. Ryan Cupit, Colby Deaville, Trace Henry, Mason Holt, Tyler Lien, Grant Schulz and Lucas Wepf are each set for their final games at Warhawk Field this weekend.

Four of the seven graduated with bachelors degrees in the fall of 2021. Cupit received a bachelors degree in kinesiology with an emphasis on sports management, Henry earned a bachelors degree in ag business, while Holt and Wepf graduated with bachelors degrees in general studies. Deaville and Schulz graduated this spring, with Deaville earning a bachelors degree in business administration and Schulz in general studies. Lien earned his Master of Business Administration.

Cupit, Deaville, Henry, Holt, Schulz and Wepf each played three seasons at ULM, while Lien played four seasons at ULM.

SCHULZ GETTING HOT AT THE PLATE
After a bit of a mid-season slump, ULM senior third baseman Grant Schulz is finding his stroke at the plate down the stretch.

Schulz has hit safely in 13 of the last 14 games after having a 12-game hitting streak broken up on Saturday at South Alabama. Over the last 10 games, he leads the team with a .342 batting average (13-for-38), with one home run, 10 RBIs, five runs scored, five walks and three stolen bases.

Schulz had three hits with an RBI in the 13-2 win over Jackson State at Warhawk Field on May 11. From May 6-8 vs. Texas State, he led the team going 5-for-12 (.417) with three RBIs, one run scored and two walks. He hit a solo home run and added a walk at Northwestern State on May 10.

He is slashing .290/.333/.400 on the season. He leads the team in RBIs (36) and sacrifice flies (five). He is second on the team in hits (61), doubles (nine), home runs (four) and total bases (84).

Schulz was selected to Perfect Game's Sun Belt Conference Preseason Team at designated hitter.

Schulz led the Warhawks with a .333 batting average in 2021, which ranked fifth in the Sun Belt Conference. He had 10 doubles, two triples, four home runs, 30 RBIs, 22 runs scored and 12 walks while playing in 42 games with 35 starts on the season. Schulz was a big part of ULM's late-season surge. Schulz hit a team-best .440 (33-for-75) from April 18 to May 28 with eight doubles, two triples, three home runs, 20 RBIs, 18 runs scored, five walks and two stolen bases. In that span, Schulz raised his batting average from .185 to lead the team at .333. He hit safely in nine of the last 10 games with six multi-hit games in that stretch.

HENRY PICKING UP THE PACE
Senior outfielder Trace Henry has broken out at the plate over the last three weeks for ULM. Over the last 10 games for the Warhawks, Henry is hitting .324 (12-for-37) with one triple, two RBIs, six runs scored, six walks and five stolen bases.

His batting average dipped to .231 on April 15 and has since rebounded to .275. He has five multi-hit games over the last 14 contests, including three hits last Saturday at South Alabama.

He has reached base safely in 16 of the last 17 games after having a 14-game reached base streak snapped last Friday at South Alabama. He then had three hits last Saturday and went 1-for-3 with an RBI on Sunday.

Henry is tied for second in the Sun Belt Conference with 19 stolen bases.

HOLT LEADS THE WAY
Senior leadoff hitter Mason Holt leads ULM with a .312 batting average, .600 slugging percentage, 64 hits, 43 runs scored, 14 doubles, three triples, 13 home runs and 123 total bases. He is second on the team with 33 RBIs, 12 stolen bases and 29 walks. He joins fellow senior Grant Schulz as the only two players to start all 51 games in 2022. He is fourth in the SBC in total bases, fifth in home runs, eighth in triples and 10th in hits.

The Coppell, Texas, native is slashing .312/.481/.600 at the plate, which all rank in the top three on the team. He has hit safely in 15 of the last 18 games and has reached base safely in the last 29 of the last 30 games after having a career-high reached base streak of 23 games snapped on May 7 vs. Texas State.

Inside SBC play, Holt is slashing .324/.425/.657 with eight doubles, two triples, eight homers, 17 RBIs, 22 runs scored and 17 walks. He is the only Warhawk hitting over .300 in SBC play.

He had a four-RBI game against Stephen F. Austin on March 23, going 2-for-4 with a double and grand slam, all in the first inning. He had a career-high four hits March 27 vs. Georgia State, going 4-for-5 with a double, home run, RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base. He belted a pair of home runs on March 29 at No. 11 LSU, driving in three of ULM's four runs. He has hit leadoff home runs in the first inning in consecutive games against Georgia State and LSU. He had three hits with a double and a home run at UT Arlington on April 2. He had two hits, including a 3-run home run, vs. Troy on April 9. He hit the go-ahead 2-run homer April 12 at Jackson State. He clubbed his 10th homer of the season with two hits and two runs scored vs. App State on April 24. He had a 2-RBI triple and a 2-run home run with a walk and two runs scored at Little Rock on April 30. He picked up two hits with an RBI, run scored and a stolen base at Louisiana Tech on May 3. He hit his 12th home run of the season on May 8 vs. Texas State. He hit a double and added his 13th home run of the season on May 13 at South Alabama.

DEAVILLE PROVIDES OFFENSIVE BOOST
Senior Colby Deaville entered the starting lineup on Saturday, March 5, against New Orleans and provided an immediate boost to the ULM offense. Deaville, who started 31 games at shortstop in 2021, is slashing .302/.408/.421, all ranking inside the top three on the team.

He has 13 multi-hit games after posting just five such games in the previous two seasons combined. He had career highs with four hits and three RBIs to go with two doubles, two runs scored, a walk and a steal on March 5 vs. UNO. He added two hits in the series finale vs. the Privateers on March 6. On March 9 vs. Northwestern State, he tacked on two hits with a double, RBI and run scored. On March 12 at Nicholls, he had two hits, including a home run, with an RBI, a run scored and two stolen bases. He had three hits, including a solo home run, with a walk and a stolen base at Coastal Carolina on March 19. He had two hits with an RBI single on March 25 vs. Georgia State before adding a solo home run on March 27. He tallied two hits with a double, was hit by a pitch and scored three runs at SFA on April 4. He was the only Warhawk to hit safely in all three games in the weekend series vs. Troy, collecting two hits in each of the last two games, going 5-for-16 with two doubles, an RBI and two runs scored vs. the Trojans from April 8-10. He tallied two hits in each of the final two games of the series vs. App State on April 23-24, including an RBI with a run scored in the series finale. He had three hits for the third time this season and scored three runs with a walk and two stolen bases at Little Rock on April 30. He walked three times at Little Rock on May 1. He collected two hits, including a double, and scored twice at Northwestern State on May 11. He was 1-for-1 at the plate against Jackson State on May 11 while adding three walks, a sacrifice fly, RBI and a run.

RYAN CUPIT DOING RYAN CUPIT THINGS
After spending two seasons as one of the first players off the bench for ULM, senior Ryan Cupit has taken over as the starting left fielder for the Warhawks.

The West Monroe, Louisiana, native ranks 51st nationally while leading ULM and the Sun Belt Conference with a .481 on-base percentage. He also ranks sixth nationally and leads ULM and the SBC in base on balls (50), while ranking fourth nationally and leading the SBC in base on balls per game (1.00). His 50 walks are 12 more than the next closest player in the SBC (Justin Thompson, Texas State, 38). His 50 walks are the second most in a single season in program history. His walk on May 11 vs. Jackson State moved him past Todd Self, who walked 48 times in the 2000 season. Terry Mathews drew 57 walks in 1987 and is the single-season program leader. Cupit has 12 walks over the last 11 contests.

He had a streak of nine consecutive games with at least one walk drawn snapped on April 4 at SFA, when he went 3-for-6 with a double, RBI and a run scored. He had a season-high four walks vs. New Orleans on March 5. 

He is hitting .309 at the plate (50-for-162), which ranks second on the team, with eight doubles, three triples, 15 RBIs, 36 runs scored, four stolen bases and has been hit by a pitch four times.

Cupit had his 13th multi-hit game of the season with two hits, including a double, with a run scored and a sacrifice bunt last Saturday at South Alabama.

Against Jackson State on May 11, he was 2-for-5 at the plate with his second two-RBI game of the season, driving in both runs on a base hit in the eighth inning to invoke the run-rule. He also added a walk and a stolen base.

In the series against No. 15 Texas State, he went 2-for-3 with two walks, an RBI and a run scored on May 6 before going 1-for-4 with a walk on May 8.

At Louisiana Tech, he hit an RBI double in the first inning and added an RBI ground in the fourth inning for his first multi-RBI game of the season and second 2-RBI game of his career (at App State, 2021).

In the series at Little Rock, he walked five times, including going 1-for-2 with three walks and two runs scored on May 1. He had his second 11-game reached base streak of the season snapped in the series opener on April 29.

Cupit has appeared in 50 of 51 games with 46 starts and has reached base safely in 45 games. 

ORTON SLAMS THE DOOR
Redshirt sophomore right-hander Carson Orton earned his sixth save of the season on April 26 at McNeese, pitching a scoreless ninth inning, allowing a hit with two strikeouts. It marked the 15th save of his career, moving him into third place on the career saves list at ULM, passing Bobby Carro with 14 saves from 2001-02. He trails Anthony Herrera's 23 saves from 2015-17 and Mark Wisniewski's 20 saves from 1982-85.

His nine saves last season ranks third in a single season in ULM history, tied with Carro's 2001 season. With one more save, Orton will become the second pitcher with two seasons ranking inside the Top 10 in saves in program history, joining Anthony Herrera.

The Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, native is 1-1 with six saves in 2022 with a 3.34 ERA over 29 2/3 innings, spread across 21 appearances. He has allowed 15 runs, 11 earned, on 35 hits with 28 strikeouts to 14 walks.

WARHAWK PITCHING ROTATION SET FOR SERIES VS. ARKANSAS STATE
ULM head coach Michael Federico has announced his starting pitching rotation for the weekend series vs. Arkansas State. Senior Tyler Lien will get a final start at Warhawk Field on Thursday night. Redshirt sophomore left-hander Cam Barlow remains on Friday night and sophomore right-hander Cole Cressend stays in the Saturday role.

Lien returns to the starting rotation for the first time since he started at UT Arlington on April 3. He has made five appearances out of the bullpen since his last start. Over his last three appearances, he has thrown 6 1/3 innings combined, allowing one run on four hits with six strikeouts and six walks. He made his best start as a Warhawk on March 13 at Nicholls, throwing seven shutout innings before allowing a run in the eighth inning before exiting, allowing three hits with five strikeouts and one walk on just 62 pitches. Last year at A-State, Lien earned his fourth win of the season while starting the regular-season finale. He pitched six innings, allowing two runs, one earned, on six hits with one walk and four strikeouts.

Barlow started the series opener on the first 13 weekends of the season. The Halls, Tennessee, native is 2-6 this season with a 5.08 ERA over 67 1/3 innings, allowing 45 runs, 38 earned, on 70 hits with 59 strikeouts and 26 walks. Last Friday at South Alabama, he allowed seven runs, five earned, on seven hits with six strikeouts and three walks. On May 6 vs. No. 15 Texas State, Barlow grinded threw five innings on 104 pitches, allowing two runs on three hits with six strikeouts and three walks, taking a no-decision. On April 29 at Little Rock, he allowed two runs on six hits with three strikeouts and one walk over 5 1/3 innings. On April 22 vs. App State, he allowed two runs on six hits with one walk and five strikeouts, suffering a tough-luck loss after throwing 5 2/3 innings in a 5-1 Warhawk loss. He pitched a career-high 7 1/3 innings and 100 pitches on April 8 vs. Troy, allowing six runs, four earned, on nine hits with four strikeouts and one walk. He took a no-decision in the March 25 5-3 win in 11 innings over Georgia State, pitching six innings while allowing three runs on four hits with three walks and five strikeouts. He earned back-to-back wins, throwing 5 2/3 innings March 18 at Coastal Carolina, allowing an unearned run on one hit with two strikeouts and a career-high six walks, but he induced three double play balls behind him to help get out of trouble. He gave up three runs in five innings for the win at Nicholls on March 11. In last year's series opener in Jonesboro, Barlow struggled, suffering the loss after allowing eight runs on six hits with one strikeout and two walks in 1 1/3 innings.

Cressend has made a weekend start in all nine previous SBC weekend series. The Mandeville, Louisiana, native is 3-6 with an 7.48 ERA over 55 1/3 innings, allowing 50 runs, 46 earned, on 62 hits with 35 strikeouts and 22 walks. Last Saturday at South Alabama, he allowed three runs on five hits with no strikeouts and two walks in 4 1/3 innings in taking the loss. On May 7 vs. No. 15 Texas State, he turned in his best start of the season, firing a career-high seven innings and 107 pitches, allowing three runs on five hits with a career-best eight strikeouts and two walks, but suffered a tough-luck loss. Against the Ragin' Cajuns on April 15, he threw six innings, allowing five runs, four earned, on seven hits with three strikeouts and one walk. He struggled on April 9 vs. Troy, allowing six runs, five earned, on four hits with two strikeouts and three walks in 3 1/3 innings. He picked up his second consecutive win on April 2 at UT Arlington, throwing five innings, allowing two runs on five hits with five strikeouts and two walks in a 5-2 win at UT Arlington. He earned the win on March 26 in a 5-2 victory against Georgia State, throwing a career-high six innings, allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits with three strikeouts and one walk. In his first career weekend start on March 19 at Coastal, he suffered the loss after working 4 2/3 innings, allowing six runs on six hits with one strikeout and two walks. He allowed three runs in the first four innings before giving up three more runs in the fifth inning after he exited the game. Last year at A-State, he threw a scoreless inning in relief in the series opener with one strikeout.

WE'RE GOING STREAKING
ULM enters Thursday's game at Arkansas State with one hitting streak of five-or-more games and four reached base streaks of five-or-more games.

Sophomore Michelle Artzberger enters the weekend sporting a season-high six-game hitting streak. He was 4-for-12 at the plate at South Alabama, including a 2-for-4 game with a run scored last Friday. He has reached base safely in eight consecutive games.

Seniors Ryan Cupit, Colby Deaville and Mason Holt have each been on base in six consecutive games.

WARHAWK WALK-OFF
ULM has picked up three walk-off wins this season.

ULM posted its first walk-off by run-rule of the season on May 11 vs. Jackson State. Ryan Cupit hit a 2-RBI single up the middle to put the Warhawks ahead 13-2 in the eighth inning, ending the contest. 

The Warhawks picked up their second walk-off of the year on April 20. In the 10th inning, sophomore Chase DeJean hit a sacrifice fly to deep left center, scoring senior Trace Henry to defeat McNeese, 4-3.

ULM junior Travis Washburn brought an end to the March 25 5-3 ULM win over Georgia State, hitting a 2-run walk-off home run to right field in the bottom of the 11th inning. It was his third home run of the season and capped a two-hit, three-RBI night for the junior.

LOCAL CONNECTIONS
The 2022 ULM roster features seven players from inside Ouachita Parish. The Warhawks have four players who attended West Monroe High School (senior Ryan Cupit, sophomore Chase DeJean and Carson Jones and freshman Lane Little), two from Sterlington High School (redshirt freshman Adam Tubbs and true freshman William Perkins) and one from Ouachita Parish High School (true freshman Zach Shaw). Overall, the Warhawks have 17 players hailing from the state of Louisiana.

O CANADA!
The 2021 ULM baseball roster features two players from Canada: pitcher Tylor Jans (Edmonton, Alberta) and pitcher Lucas Wepf (Brampton, Ontario).