Raiders head to Purdue Fort Wayne for three-game series

Friday, April 1

Fort Wayne, IN

12 PM

Wright State University

Purdue Fort Wayne

Raiders head to Purdue Fort Wayne for three-game series

3/31/2022 2:11:00 PM | Baseball

DAYTON — The Wright State baseball program will continue its Horizon League slate with a three-game series at Purdue Fort Wayne from April 1-3. The series opener and closer will take place at Mastodon Field, while game two will occur at nearby Indiana Tech. Live stats will be available for all three games.

Game 1 - Friday, April 1 - Noon - Live Stats
WSU RHP Jake Shirk (1-4, 6.91 ERA, 28.2 IP)
PFW RHP Rex Stills (1-2, 4.15 ERA, 13.0 IP)

Game 2 - Saturday, April 2 - 2 p.m. - Live Stats
WSU LHP Sebastian Gongora (2-1, 7.81 ERA, 27.2 IP)
PFW RHP Mitchell Spencer (1-1, 4.91 ERA, 33.0 IP)

Game 3 - Sunday, April 3 - 1 p.m. - Live Stats
WSU LHP Alex Theis (1-0, 5.79 ERA, 14.0 IP)
PFW TBA

LAST TIME OUT
The Raiders are coming off a 15-12 loss to Miami (OH) in the first round of the Joe Nuxhall Classic in Cincinnati. WSU built a quick 8-1 lead after plating eight runs in the second inning but the Redhawks responded with four runs in the bottom of the second and a seven-spot in the fourth to gain a 12-9 advantage. Miami continued to hold the momentum, extending their edge to 15-9 by the end of the sixth inning. Wright State attempted a late comeback with three runs in the top of the ninth, but it was not enough, sealing the midweek loss.

Last weekend, Wright State combined for 49 runs en route to a Horizon League series sweep at Northern Kentucky. The Raiders exploded for a season-high 18 runs in the series opener before winning the next two games by final scores of 14-11 and 17-10, respectively. WSU batted .365 over the three-game stretch and added nine doubles and seven home runs as a team. The Raiders also went 10-for-12 on stolen-base attempts and committed just one error defensively.

SCOUTING THE 'DONS
Purdue Fort Wayne opened the 2022 campaign 1-16 overall but has won three of its last six games, highlighted by an 8-7 walk-off victory over Youngstown State. Cade Fitzpatrick has paced the offense, as he is batting .371 with one double, one triple, five home runs, and 12 RBI. Jack Lang has compiled team-leading marks in RBI (16), runs (15), and stolen bases (7). Friday's starting pitcher Rex Stills possesses a team-low 4.15 earned run average in 13.0 innings. The Mastodons have allowed an average of 8.52 runs per game through 23 games.

HISTORY VS. PFW
The all-time series is tied 4-4 between Wright State and Purdue Fort Wayne. The teams met just four times before the PFW joined the Horizon League, with the 'Dons winning each time. A season ago, Wright State posted 88 runs en route to a four-game road sweep at PFW, tallying 20-plus runs in three games. The Raiders hit .451 as a team with a .870 slugging percentage, totaling 28 doubles, 15 home runs, and two triples as 13 different players drove in multiple RBI and five had two or more homers, paced by Alec Sayre's three homers and 11 RBI. On the mound, Wright State pitchers struck out 50 batters in 34 innings, allowing just 16 runs, many in the later innings once the games were out of hand.

HOME RUN KING
Zane Harris has blasted a three-run homer in three consecutive games. He is batting 6-for-14 (.428) in the stretch with a double, three home runs, 12 RBI, and five runs scored, climbing his batting average from .195 to .230 on the season.

HEATING UP
Over Jay Luikart's last seven games, he has gone 16-for-31 (.516) at the plate with four doubles, one triple, two homers, eight RBI, and 12 runs scored. The sophomore has recorded a career-high three hits versus Oakland (3/20), Ohio State (3/22), and NKU (3/25). On the mound, Luikart is 2-1 with a 1.59 ERA in 5.2 innings. He collected his first save of the season in WSU's 6-3 win over Indiana State (3/10).

RUNS FOR DAYS
Wright State sits 65th nationally with a conference-best 7.4 runs per game. The top-five individual run-scorers in the HL all sport the Green & Gold, led by Sammy Sass in first with 24 runs.

DEFENSE PAYS OFF
The Raiders rank first in the Horizon League with a .970 fielding percentage. A pair of starters in Justin Riemer and Luikart have yet to commit an error this season. As a team, WSU has been errorless in seven games.

MAKING A STATEMENT
Julian Greenwell was named Horizon League Batter of the Week after batting .625 (10-for-16) with eight RBI and seven runs scored last week. In all four games, the sophomore tallied two or more hits, a walk, and a run to help the Raiders to their first series sweep of the season. To add, Greenwell recorded a perfect .1000 fielding percentage with 18 putouts while also going 1-for-1 on stolen-base attempts. The Columbus, Ind., native was at his best in WSU's 18-4 victory at NKU (3/25), going 2-for-3 at the plate with a career-high four RBI and two runs to go along with a walk and a steal. Greenwell reached base five times on three hits, a walk, and a hit by pitch in Wright State's series finale versus the Norse (3/27).

STAR IN THE MAKING
To date, Sayre sits atop the HL in hits (33), doubles (11), and doubles per game (0.50). He also ranks fourth in batting average (.363), runs (20), and walks (16). The sophomore outfielder has tallied 11 multi-hit performances, highlighted by a four-hit showing against Oakland (3/20).

HE GETS ON BASE
On the season, Greenwell is batting .338 with five doubles, two triples, two home runs, and 21 RBI. He leads the conference in triples and hit by pitch (11) while also possessing top-five HL marks in on-base percentage (2nd, .500), runs (3rd, 21), RBI (3rd), and walks (T-4th, 16).

REMEMBER THE NAME
Alex Theis has gone 1-0 with a 1.22 ERA and 12 strikeouts over his last two appearances, allowing just one run on five hits and two walks in a combined 7.1 innings of work. Against Ohio State (3/22), the left-hander held the Buckeyes scoreless on one hit and no walks while striking out five in 2.1 innings. The New Riegel, Ohio native collected his first win of the season and a quality start in WSU's Sunday finale at NKU, allowing one run on four hits in five innings. Theis recorded a season-high seven strikeouts in the win to help seal a road sweep.

VETERAN POWER
Gehrig Anglin is tied for 12th nationally with a conference-leading 10 home runs. The redshirt junior has homered in nine of his last 16 games and has reached base in 20 out of 21 games this season. He entered the 2022 campaign with three homers in 178 career at-bats. The St. Clair, Mich., native has slugged 10 homers in just 78 at-bats this season.

In addition to home runs, Anglin leads the Horizon League in slugging percentage (.744), runs batted in (26), and total bases (58).

PATIENT AT THE PLATE
The Raiders have walked 126 times through 22 games, good for 50th nationally and first in the conference. WSU drew a season-high 13 free passes in its series finale against Northern Kentucky.

BALL MAGNET
Greenwell was plunked in four consecutive plate appearances at Georgia Tech and five times overall in the season-opening series. To date, Greenwell ranks 17th nationally in hit by pitch per game (0.48) and 13th in total hit by pitch (11). Wright State sits atop the Horizon League in HBP (29) as a team.

NEWCOMERS SHOWING OUT
Justin Riemer ranks sixth on the team with a .291 batting average and has added 11 RBI and 12 runs. The redshirt freshman has started the last 10 games at second base. Drew Baker has batted .316 with three doubles and four RBI in limited action. He doubled twice in his first career start against Xavier (3/16).

ACTIVE STREAKS
Sayre » 14-game reached base streak
Sass » 13-game reached base streak
Luikart » 7-game hitting streak
Luikart » Multiple hits in five-straight games
Harris » 5-game hitting streak
Greenwell & Sass » Have scored in seven-straight games
Harris » Has homered in three-straight games

"POWER 5" DOMINANCE
After defeating Virginia Tech on March 4, Wright State has knocked off a "Power Five" conference program 19 times since 2014.

2/16/14 — vs. Michigan State (Neutral Site) — W, 7-1
3/1/14 — at #4 Oregon State — W, 6-2
2/22/15 - at #18 Ole Miss — W, 3-1
3/1/15 — at #11 Miami — W, 12-6
5/31/15 — vs. Notre Dame (NCAA Regional) — W, 4-0
2/26/16 — at #8 NC State — W, 10-8
3/5/16 — at Georgia — W, 3-1
6/5/16 — vs. #20 Ohio State (NCAA Regional) — W, 7-3
2/17/17 — at #10 Clemson — W, 6-4
2/19/17 — at #10 Clemson — W, 9-2
2/26/17 — at #4 South Carolina — W, 5-1
3/5/17 — vs. Pittsburgh (Neutral site) — W, 3-1
2/16/19 — at #10 Ole Miss — W, 9-5
2/24/19 — at #19 Oklahoma State — W, 5-4
4/3/19 — at Indiana — W, 15-4
2/19/20 — at #1 Louisville — W, 10-3
3/6/20 — at #11 Tennessee — W, 5-4
3/8/20 — at #11 Tennessee — W, 6-3
3/4/22 — at Virginia Tech — W, 11-5

PRESEASON ATTENTION
The Raiders were projected to win the Horizon League in the conference's annual preseason poll, collecting 42 points and six first-place votes, ahead of UIC in second with 35 points. WSU also topped the D1Baseball.com preseason poll, in addition to Sammy Sass tabbing preseason Player of the Year and Andrew Patrick earning preseason Freshman of the Year.

TOP PROSPECTS
D1Baseball listed several WSU players as top positional and overall prospects ahead of the 2022 season. A pair of returners in Logan Tabeling and Sayre were listed as top 250 prospects for the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft. Sass was ranked 17th among D1 catchers, while Sayre checked in as the 19th-best outfielder. A fifth-year senior in Zane Harris was listed as the No. 21 first baseman in the site's positional rankings.

RETURNING TALENT
Offensively, WSU returns eight players that appeared in over half of its games last season. The group includes all-conference selections Sass, Sayre, and Harris. The pitching staff features nine individuals who made eight or more appearances, led by Jake Shirk, who went 7-0 with a 2.01 ERA in 22.1 innings of work as a freshman.

COACHING SUCCESS
Alex Sogard, the seventh-youngest active head coach in Division I baseball, is 92-52 at the helm of the Raiders. Among fourth-year D1 coaches entering the season, he possessed the top winning percentage (.680), fewest losses, and third-most wins. Sogard collected 2021 ABCA/ATEC East Coach of the Year honors after guiding WSU to the 2021 Knoxville Regional. The Phoenix, Arizona, native led the Raiders to a 42-17 record in 2019, the most wins by a first-year head coach in program history. Wright State beat three ranked teams in 2019 and took down top-ranked Louisville in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign before going 35-13 in 2021 on the way to the Horizon League regular season and tournament titles. In June 2021, Sogard was named to the 2021 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team coaching staff.

LEADING THE NATION
Wright State led Division I baseball in the following statistical categories a season ago:

» Batting average (.339)
» Doubles per game (2.71)
» On-base percentage (.447)
» Scoring (10.5)
» Slugging percentage (.579)
» Quincy Hamilton - Bases on balls per game (1.17)
» Quincy Hamilton - Runs per game (1.62)

WSU TO THE MAJORS
Wright State saw three total players selected in Major League Baseball's 2021 first-year player draft, along with another two signing free agent contracts. The three selections, all inside the top 10 rounds, give the Raiders 16 total draftees over the last seven drafts dating back to 2015 and 40 total players in program history.