No. 12 Eagles begin SAC play with weekend series against Catawba
Feb. 20, 2009
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. -- The 12th-ranked Carson-Newman baseball team will begin its South Atlantic Conference slate this weekend with a three-game series against 2008 conference regular season champion Catawba at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex.
The Eagles and Indians will play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 12 p.m., and the series will conclude on Sunday with a single game at 1 p.m.
C-N (8-3) enters the series on a four-game winning streak, including three wins against then-No. 22 Northern Kentucky.
The Eagles are coming off an 11-10 victory in 10 innings over Limestone on Tuesday. Junior Corey Lamson (Gray, Tenn.) went 3-for-3 with three doubles in the win, including a double in the 10th inning that drove in the winning run.
For the Eagles' success to carry on, they will need starter Justin Higdon (Ooltewah, Tenn.) and reliever Corbin Ariail (Elgin, S.C.) to continue to have solid outings on the mound. Higdon is 2-0 with a 1.12 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 16 innings of work this season, and opponents are hitting just .138 against the senior right-hander.
"Our pitching has to get better," Eagle head coach Tom Griffin said. "We need more out of our bullpen and our starters need to be able to step it up too. Ariail has been great since moving back, but we need other guys to become more reliable."
Ariail, who was named SAC Pitcher of the Week on Tuesday, recorded two saves in the Northern Kentucky series and earned the win against Limestone after allowing just two hits in four scoreless innings of work. The senior right-hander is 2-0 with a 2.66 ERA and 11 strikeouts on the season.
Catawba (4-4), which was picked to finish second in the SAC preseason coaches' poll, will travel to Mossy Creek having lost three out of its last four contests after being ranked as high as No. 7 nationally. The Indians dropped out of the latest Collegiate Baseball Poll.
"Catawba is a complete baseball team," Griffin added of his weekend opponent. "They lost a lot of big bats from last season, but they've changed their style of play and are just as good. Their pitching is strong and deep, and they're a great defensive team."
Catawba is coming off a 10-4 win at Belmont Abbey in which preseason first team All-SAC selection Craig Lyerly went 5-for-5 with three RBIs and three runs scored. The junior third baseman is leading the Indians at the plate this season, batting .400 with six doubles, one triple, one home run and six RBIs.
The Eagles went 2-1 against Catawba during the 2008 regular season but lost both meetings in the postseason, including a 14-3 loss in the NCAA Division II South Regional tournament that ended their season.
-C-N-
