On Deck - Lions vs McNeese State

SLU Lions (12-5, 3-0 SLC) vs McNeese State Cowboys (10-8, 2-1 SLC)

"The Pat" - Hammond, LA
Game 1:  6pm Friday March 18
Game 2:  2pm Saturday March 19
Game 3:  1pm Sunday March 20


The Line on SLU
Offense:  .307
Pitching:  3.10 ERA, .243 OBA
Defense:  .961
Ranking:  n/a
Boyd's World RPI:  14
Last 10 Games:  6-4
Last 5 Games:  4-1
Streak L1

The Line on McNeese State
Offense:  .286
Pitching:  5.01 ERA, .288 OBA
Defense:  .958
Ranking:  n/a
Boyd's World RPI:  172
Last 10 Games:  7-3
Last 5 Games:  3-2
Streak:  L1

What to Watch For
SLU's top hitters are Justin Boudreaux (.431/3/19), Jonathan Pace (.397/1/13), and Jeff Harkensee (.362/6/26).  The Cowboy's top pitchers are Matt Click (3.28, 1-1), Zach Butler (3.46, 2-0), and Phil Parcell (5.27, 2-0).  Closer Jordan Legros (0.73, 5 Saves) has 18 strike outs in 12.1 innings pitched.

SLU's top pitchers are Tyler Watkins (1.86, 3-0), Brandon Efferson (2.45, 3-0), and Joseph Koon (6.10, 2-1).  Stefan Lopez (1.35, 4 Saves) enters the weekend with 17 strike outs in 13.1 innings pitched.  The top hitters for the Cowboys are Renny Weber (.410/0/5), Lee Orr (.371/0/21), and Seth Granger (.365/1/25).

Last Time They Played - Last season the Lions won the weekend series in Lake Charles by winning game one 6-5 and game two 9-2.  The Cowboys took game three 4-3 in 10 innings.  In the SLC tourney SLU and McNeese matched up in the 1st round with the Cowboys winning 8-7.  Two days later in an elimination game the Cowboys won 5-4.

Showcase Series - The top two shortstops in the Southland Conference will be on display at "The Pat" this weekend as Justin Boudreaux and Jace Peterson go head to head.  Boudreaux comes into the weekend hitting .431 with seven doubles, two triples, 3 home runs, 19 RBI and slugging .708.  The Cowboy's Peterson is hitting .338 with two doubles, three triples, eight RBI, and is 13-16 in stolen bases.

Running Game - SLU (29) and McNeese (25) rank 3rd and 4th in the SLC in stolen bases.  Of the Cowboys 25 stolen bases Jace Peterson (13-16) and Lee Orr (9-9) account for 22 of them.  The Lions have been caught stealing 14 times and McNeese has been caught 4 times.

Bash Brothers - Boudreaux (.708) and Jeff Harkensee (.681) rank 1st and 2nd in the SLC in slugging percentage.  JBoo ranks 1st in hits (31) and total bases (51).  Hark ranks first in home runs (6) and RBI (26).

Streaking - After going 1-4 on Tuesday at Tulane, Jonathan Pace extended his hitting streak to 14 games.