ULM Warhawks

ULM (5-4 overall, 0-0 Sun Belt Conference) at UIW (3-6 overall, 0-0 Southland Conference)
Sullivan Field | San Antonio, Texas

6:30 p.m. Friday, March 3, 2023 | WATCH: ESPN+ | LISTEN: 105.7 FM/540 AM KMLB | LIVE STATS
LHP Cam Barlow, 5-11, Jr. (1-1, 6.00 ERA, 9 K, 6 BB) vs. LHP Kayden Cassidy, 6-0, R-Sr. (1-1, 2.79 ERA, 9 K, 8 BB)

2 p.m. Saturday, March 4, 2023 | WATCH: ESPN+ | LISTEN: 105.7 FM/540 AM KMLB | LIVE STATS
RHP Cole Cressend, 6-3, Jr. (1-1, 5.59 ERA, 6 K, 5 BB) vs. RHP Isaiah Zavala, 5-11, Sr. (1-0, 3.97 ERA, 20 K, 4 BB)

1 p.m. Sunday, March 5, 2023 | WATCH: ESPN+ | LISTEN: 105.7 FM/540 AM KMLB | LIVE STATS
LHP Chipper Menard, 5-11, Jr. (1-0, 4.63 ERA, 13 K, 3 BB) vs. TBA

GAME NOTES

MONROE, La. - The ULM baseball team plays its first road weekend of the 2023 season, meeting UIW for the first time in program history at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Sullivan Field in San Antonio. The two teams meet again at 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.

ULM is coming off a 14-1 win in seven innings over Grambling on Tuesday at Lou St. Amant Field. The Warhawks scored seven runs on just three hits with five walks and one Grambling error in the sixth inning to blow the game open. Riley Davis, Carson Jones and Shawn Dalton Weatherbee had two hits each for ULM, while Jake Haggard drove in four runs and Jones added three RBIs. Davis had a pair of RBIs. On the mound, junior left-hander Hollis Huff limited Grambling to one run and one hit over six innings for his first win.

ULM dropped two of three games last weekend to SIUE at Lou St. Amant Field. Last Friday, the Cougars scored six runs over the third and fourth innings to build a 6-1 lead. Cardell Thibodeaux's 3-run home run in the fifth inning brought the Warhawks back within two, 6-4, but ULM was unable to get closer, as SIUE won, 7-4. Last Saturday, Cole Cressend allowed just one run over six innings on the mound, while Zack Floyd had three hits, including a triple and a solo home run, as ULM rolled to a 7-1 win. Last Sunday, the Warhawks led 4-0 through five innings before SIUE scored four runs with two outs in the sixth inning and added four more runs over the final three innings to pull away for the 8-5 series-clinching win.

ULM head coach Michael Federico is in his sixth 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. In 2022, Federico led the Warhawks to their third consecutive appearance in the SBC Championship, including a first-round win against Georgia State before falling to eventual regional-finalist team Texas State in the rain-altered single-elimination quarterfinals.

Junior catcher Riley Davis is ninth in the Sun Belt Conference in hitting a .455. The Collierville, Tennessee, native has made seven starts, going 10-for-22 at the plate with four doubles, seven RBIs and two runs scored. He has hit safely in four consecutive games, with four multi-hit games on the season. He had two hits with two RBIs, two runs scored on two walks on Tuesday vs. Grambling.

Red-shirt freshman Kade Dupont has had a solid start to the season, hitting .364 (12-for-33) with one double, five RBIs and 11 runs scored while adding four walks. His 11 runs scored is tied for fifth most in the SBC.

Junior first baseman Michelle Artzberger ranks tied for fifth in the SBC with 13 RBIs. He is one of four Warhawks, along with Dupont, Shawn Dalton Weatherbee and Cardell Thibodeaux, to start all nine games. He is hitting .281 (9-for-32) with two doubles, two home runs and 10 runs scored with nine walks.

All three games of the series will stream on ESPN+. Pending the results of ULM men's basketball at the Sun Belt Conference Championship, all three games are tentatively scheduled to be broadcast on 105.7 FM/540 AM KMLB, KMLB.com and the TuneIn app with Mike Hammett on the call. A link to live stats can be found on the baseball schedule page at ULMWarhawks.com.

WARHAWKS, UIW MEET FOR FIRST TIME IN PROGRAM HISTORY
For the second time this season, ULM meets a new opponent. The Warhawks visit Sullivan Field in San Antonio to face off with UIW for the first time in program history. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.

ULM also battled Bradley on opening weekend at Lou St. Amant Field in the first three meetings between the Warhawks and the Braves. ULM took the Friday game, 7-0, and the Sunday game, 8-4, while Bradley won Saturday's contest, 8-6.

DUPONT OFF TO QUICK START FOR WARHAWKS
Red-shirt freshman Kade Dupont has started at second base and hit in the top third of the lineup in each of the first nine games of the season. The Watson, Louisiana, native has hit safely in seven of nine games after having a six-game hitting streak snapped on Tuesday night, going 0-for-2 with a walk, RBI and a run scored. He had a pair of three hit games coming against Bradley (Feb. 17) and at Mississippi State (Feb. 21). He added two hits with an RBI on Feb. 25 vs. SIUE. He is tied for fifth in the Sun Belt Conference with 11 runs scored.

He hit safely in all three games over the weekend against SIUE. He was 1-for-3 on Feb. 26 against the Cougars with a walk and a run scored. He had two hits on Feb. 25 while adding an RBI, two runs scored and a walk. He opened the series on Feb. 24 with a 1-for-5 day at the plate with a run scored.

He picked up a hit in both games at Mississippi State. After opening the midweek set with a 3-for-5 game with a double, RBI and three runs scored, he went 1-for-3 at the plate on Feb. 22.

In his collegiate debut against Bradley on Feb. 17, he had three hits, scored twice and stole a base. He closed out the series with Bradley on Feb. 19 by going 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Despite going 0-for-3 at the plate on Feb. 18, he picked up an RBI on his first sacrifice fly.

ARTZBERGER MAKES THE MOST OF HIS EARLY SEASON HITS
ULM junior first baseman Michelle Artzberger has made the most out of his contact through the first nine games of the 2023 season. He is hitting .281 at the plate, going 9-for-32 with two doubles and two home runs among his nine hits. He has 13 RBIs on the season after picking up three over the weekend against SIUE, and is tied for fifth in the Sun Belt Conference. He was 0-for-2 with two walks and a run scored on Tuesday against Grambling. He has reached base safely in all nine contests, drawing nine bases on balls and has been hit by a pitch once. He has reached base safely in a career-high 22 consecutive games dating back to last season.

He picked up four hits in the weekend series against SIUE, adding three RBIs with four runs scored and a walk. He opened the series on Friday with two hits, an RBI and a run scored. On Saturday, he picked up a walk with a run scored. He closed the series on Sunday with two more hits, driving in two runs while scoring twice.

Last Tuesday at Mississippi State, he hit a 2-run home run in the fifth inning to give ULM a 3-0 lead, and then belted a 3-run home run in the sixth inning to push the lead to 7-0 as the Warhawks went on to the 11-5 win. 

He opened the season with a double and an RBI on Feb. 17 vs. Bradley before adding a hit and an RBI on Feb. 18. He had a ground-rule double and also drove in three runs in the series-clinching win on Feb. 19. 

RUNNIN' DOWN A DREAM
ULM freshman outfielder Cardell Thibodeaux and junior outfielder Shawn Dalton Weatherbee are tied for the team lead with four stolen bases apiece through the first nine games of the year, which is tied for fifth-most in the Sun Belt Conference.

Thibodeaux stole three bases in the regular season opener vs. Bradley on Feb. 17 and added another against the Braves on Feb. 19. He is hitting .258, going 8-for-31 at the plate with a double, home run, eight RBIs and six runs scored. He hit his first collegiate home run, a three-run blast, on Friday against SIUE.

Weatherbee has stolen one base in three of the last four games and also swiped a bag on Feb. 19 against Bradley. He has 10 hits on the season, picking up two hits on Friday and Sunday against SIUE and again on Tuesday vs. Grambling while adding an RBI against the Tigers. He has scored one run in three of the last four games and has scored seven times this season. He joins Thibodeaux, Artzberger and Dupont as the only four Warhawks to start all nine games.

DAVIS COMES ON STRONG AT MISSISSIPPI STATE, VS. SIUE
ULM junior catcher Riley Davis has started each of the last six games, collecting all 10 of his hits in that span. He is hitting .455 (10-for-22) with a team-high four doubles with seven RBIs and four walks. He went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs on Feb. 21 vs. Mississippi State for his first three hits as a Warhawk. He continued the hot streak by hitting safely in all three games of the weekend series against SIUE. He picked up two hits, including a double, last Friday against the Cougars. Last Saturday, he picked up another double with a pair of RBIs and a walk. He wrapped up the series last Sunday wtih two more hits, including another double, with an RBI. He went 2-for-2 at the plate with two RBIs and two runs scored with two walks on Tuesday vs. Grambling for his fourth multi-hit and third multi-RBI game in the last six games.

BARLOW RETURNS TO FRIDAY NIGHT ROLE IN 2023
Junior left-handed pitcher Cam Barlow makes his third Friday start of the 2023 season at Incarnate Word. In his 2023 debut, Barlow threw five innings to pick up the win against Bradley on Feb. 17, scattering four hits with seven strikeouts and two walks. He suffered the loss last Friday vs. SIUE, allowing six runs on seven hits with four walks and two strikeouts over four innings. He is 1-1 with a 6.00 ERA over nine innings, allowing six runs on 11 hits with six walks and nine strikeouts.

Barlow enters his fifth season at ULM in 2023. He joined the club and redshirted the 2019 season and received a COVID-eligibility waiver for the 2020 season, leaving him as the longest-tenured Warhawk. He has one more year of eligibility available for 2024.

Barlow started the series opener on the first 13 weekends of the 2022 season before sticking with his Friday spot in the final week of the regular season against Arkansas State. He made his first postseason appearance against Texas State in the Sun Belt Conference Championship quarterfinals on May 27. He suffered the loss against the Bobcats, allowing three runs, one earned, on four hits with one walk and eight strikeouts.

The Halls, Tennessee, native finished the 2022 season at 2-7 with a 5.14 ERA over 77 innings, allowing 53 runs, 44 earned, on 82 hits with 69 strikeouts and 31 walks. On May 20 vs. Arkansas State, he allowed five runs, all in the first inning, before settling down and grinding through 4 2/3 innings, allowing eight hits with two strikeouts and four walks. On May 13 at South Alabama, he allowed seven runs, five earned, on seven hits with six strikeouts and three walks. 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. He took a no-decision in last year's season-opener, throwing seven shutout innings, allowing two hits with one walk and six strikeouts against Southern Illinois on Feb. 18.

CRESSEND CONTINUES SATURDAY SPOT IN 2023
ULM junior right-handed pitcher Cole Cressend will make the Saturday start for the third-consecutive week. He is 1-1 with a 5.59 ERA over 9 2/3 innings, allowing six runs on nine hits with five walks and six strikeouts. He was sharp last Saturday, earning the win against SIUE, allowing one run on five hits with one walk and four strikeouts over six innings. He suffered the loss on opening weekend against Bradley, allowing five runs on four hits with two strikeouts and four walks over 3 2/3 innings.

He returns to the rotation as the Saturday starter after finishing the 2022 season in that role. He appeared in 15 games with 12 starts, posting a 3-6 record with a 7.08 ERA over 61 innings, allowing 53 runs, 48 earned, on 66 hits with 40 strikeouts and 25 walks.

He made a weekend start in all 10 Sun Belt Conference series as well as a start against Georgia State at the Sun Belt Conference Championship, allowing three runs, two earned, on four hits with three strikeouts and three walks. He threw two perfect innings with two strikeouts in a designated short start vs. Arkansas State on May 21 to prepare for the SBC Championship single-elimination game. He allowed three runs on five hits with two walks and no strikeouts over 4 1/3 innings at South Alabama on May 14. He took a tough-luck loss, pitching a career-high seven innings, allowing three runs on five hits with a career-best eight strikeouts and two walks vs. No. 15 Texas State on May 7. He matched his career-high with six innings, allowing five runs, four earned, on seven hits with three strikeouts and one walk in a no-decision at the Ragin' Cajuns. He earned his second consecutive win, firing five innings, allowing two runs on five hits with two walks and five strikeouts at UT Arlington on April 2. He picked up the win, tossing six innings with two runs, one earned, on three hits with three strikeouts and one walk vs. Georgia State on March 26. He made his first career weekend start, throwing 4 2/3 innings, allowing six runs on six hits with one strikeout and two walks at Coastal Carolina on March 19. He earned his first career win with three shutout and hitless innings out of the bullpen, including two strikeouts and one walk vs. Northwestern State on March 9. He threw a career-high 4 2/3 innings at Ole Miss, allowing five runs on four hits with two strikeouts and four walks on March 2.

LEFT-HANDER MENARD EMBRACING SUNDAY ROLE
Junior left-handed pitcher Chipper Menard is slated for his third-straight Sunday start to begin the 2023 season to close out the series against UIW on Sunday. He is 1-0 with a 4.63 ERA over 11 2/3 innings, which ranks as the fourth-most innings pitched in the SBC entering the weekend, allowing six runs on eight hits with three walks and 13 strikeouts. He worked five scoreless innings before running into trouble in the sixth inning against SIUE last Sunday, allowing four runs on six hits with one walk and a career-high seven strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings. Menard dazzled in his ULM debut on Feb. 19 against Bradley, working into the seventh inning before running into trouble. After allowing a leadoff single to Ryan Vogel, Menard retired the next 17 batters and faced the minimum through six innings. He allowed two runs on two hits with six strikeouts and two walks to win his ULM debut.

A transfer from the Ragin' Cajuns, Menard transitions into a starting role after serving primarily as a reliever in Lafayette. As a sophomore in 2022, he made 26 appearances for the Cajuns, going 5-1 with three saves and a 4.48 ERA over 26 1/3 innings with 30 strikeouts and 11 walks. He faced ULM twice, throwing 2 1/3 combined shutout innings against his future team, allowing four hits with two strikeouts and a walk.

JUDICE, BURRELL STRONG OUT OF BULLPEN
Junior right-handed pitchers Dalton Burrell and Nicholas Judice have been bright spots out of the bullpen so far in 2023. 

Burrell, a transfer from LSU Eunice, leads qualifying bullpen pitchers with a 1.50 ERA over six innings, spread among three appearances, allowing one run on five hits with two strikeouts and two walks. He made his ULM debut against Bradley on Feb. 18, throwing three innings, allowing one run on four this with one walk and two strikeouts. He threw two perfect innings against SIUE on Feb. 24 before throwing another scoreless inning with one hit and one walk on Feb. 26 against SIUE.

Judice, who is in his fourth season at ULM, has thrown seven innings over three appearances out of the bullpen, posting a 2.57 ERA with a save, allowing two runs on three hits with three walks and 10 strikeouts. His 10 strikeouts are second-most on the team behind only starting pitcher Chipper Menard. He threw three scoreless innings in the season opener against Bradley on Feb. 17, allowing one hit with one walk and five strikeouts. After giving up two runs on two hits with a walk and a strikeout while pitching the ninth inning of ULM's 11-5 win at Mississippi State on Feb. 21, he bounced back by throwing the final three shutout innings on Feb. 25 vs. SIUE to earn the save, allowing one walk with four strikeouts.

LOCAL CONNECTIONS
The 2023 ULM baseball roster includes six players who played high school baseball inside Ouachita (wah-shuh-tah) Parish. The roster includes three players from Sterlington High School in senior outfielder Jarrett McDonald, freshman infielder Seaver Sheets and sophomore left-handed pitcher Adam Tubbs; two players from West Monroe High School in junior infielder and right-handed pitcher Chase DeJean and junior infielder Carson Jones; and one player from Ouachita High School in sophomore right-handed pitcher Zach Shaw.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
The 2023 ULM baseball roster features both a Canadian and an Australian. Pitcher Russell Derbyshire (Leamington, Ontario) represents Canada on the roster. It marks the sixth consecutive season ULM has had at least one Canadian on the roster. Pitcher Maxim Mrakovcic (Sydney, Australia) is the lone Australian on the roster.

P-40 SUNDAYS
ULM unveiled its P-40 Warhawk series uniforms on March 7, 2021, vs. Nicholls. The Warhawks wear the P-40 uniforms every Sunday, home or away. The Curtiss P-40 Warhawks constituted the principal armament of the U.S. Army Air Force (USAFF) fighter squadrons in the early 1940s. In the summer of 1941, Maj. Gen. Claire Lee Chennault, who grew up in Louisiana, began recruiting and training pilots for the American Volunteer Group, who became known as the "Flying Tigers" in China during World War II. The P-40 Warhawk served as inspiration for ULM's new nickname/mascot, adopted in 2006. The P-40 uniform series incorporates details of the fighter into its design. The ULM baseball team is the third Warhawk team to wear a P-40 Warhawk alternate uniform, joining football and men's basketball.

ULM PICKED 11TH IN NEW-LOOK SUN BELT CONFERENCE
The ULM baseball team was selected to finish 11th in the Sun Belt Conference in the preseason SBC Coaches' Poll, announced Feb. 8 by the SBC office.

The Warhawks finished with 58 points, sitting behind 10th-place James Madison at 73 points and ahead of App State at 43 points. Southern Miss earned 11 first-place votes and was picked to win the league with 192 points, ahead of Georgia Southern and Texas State, who tied for second. 
Seven different SBC programs were noted in at least one of the five major national preseason polls.

Southern Miss, which hosted a NCAA Baseball Regional and Super Regional a year ago, was ranked among the Top 25 in every major preseason poll. The Golden Eagles were listed as high as No. 18 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and D1Baseball, while also earning nods in the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll (No. 19), the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Preseason Poll (No. 20) and the Baseball America Preseason Top 25 (No. 21). 
 
2022 NCAA Baseball Regional host Georgia Southern was also listed at No. 35 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, which ranks the Top 50 teams in its preseason edition, and received votes in both the NCBWA and USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches preseason ledgers. 
 
The Sun Belt Conference fell one game short of sending a team to a Super Regional for the fourth and fifth time since 2014 a year ago—with both Coastal Carolina and Texas State reaching their respective regional finals. 
 
Both the Chanticleers and Bobcats received votes in all three preseason polls that publish a receiving votes category—Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, NCBWA and USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches. 
 
The Ragin' Cajuns, the Sun Belt's fourth postseason participant from 2022, earned preseason mention from both Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and NCBWA. 
 
Old Dominion—which was among the last four teams left out of last year's NCAA field—and Troy—which advanced to last year's Sun Belt Baseball Championship semifinals—received votes in the NCBWA preseason publication. 
 
The Sun Belt boasted the No. 6 conference RPI in the nation in 2022—trailing only the SEC, ACC, Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA. Four current Sun Belt programs were listed among the Top 30 in the final RPI in 2022—No. 20 Texas State, No. 22 Southern Miss, No. 25 Georgia Southern and No. 29 Coastal Carolina. 
 
No. 46 Old Dominion, No. 54 Ragin' Cajuns, No. 73 South Alabama, No. 97 Georgia State and No. 100 Troy gave the new-look Sun Belt nine teams among the Top 100 at the conclusion of the 2022 campaign. 
 
Sun Belt baseball programs have earned 18 NCAA berths over the past 10 seasons.