RADFORD OPENS HOME SLATE ON FRIDAY WITH NORTHERN KENTUCKY

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RADFORD, Va. – After playing the first 13 games away from home, Radford opens the home portion of the 2017 slate on Friday with a four-game series against Northern Kentucky, marking the first meeting all-time between the two opponents.

SETTING THE STAGE
- Series: First meeting
- Location: Radford Baseball Stadium (Radford, Va.)
- Live Stats
- Watch Live (Game 1) (Game 2)

ON THE BUMP
Friday, March 10 – 12 p.m.
LHP Zack Ridgely (0-3, 5.60 ERA) vs. LHP Trey Ganns (0-2, 9.49 ERA)
Friday, March 10 – 3:30 p.m.
RHP Danny Hrbek (1-1, 6.60 ERA) vs. RHP Pat Kelley (0-0, 6.00 ERA)
Saturday, March 11 – 1 p.m.)
TBA vs. Jean-Francois Dionne (First Appearance)
Sunday, March 12 – 1 p.m.
TBA vs. TBA

HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS

Record: 3-10
After being outscored 9-1 in a March 3 matchup against Kent State, Radford has tallied 24 runs in four games.
Opponents have outscored the Highlanders 99-51 on the season. Radford's best inning has been the eighth inning, tallying nine runs.
In a 4-0 win over Quinnipiac, Danny Hrbek etched his name into Radford baseball immortality, throwing the first nine-inning no-hitter in program history. The no-hitter was the fourth in program history, which includes two seven-inning no-hitters and one rain shortened five-inning game.
Hrbek totaled a career-high eight strikeouts, yielding no walks, facing just one batter over the minimum. In the nine innings, Hrbek had three innings of two-plus strikeouts, throwing only 88 pitches in the contest that included 63 strikes.
The right-hander received several national honors on the week. Hrbek was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association National Pitcher of the Week, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper National Player of the Week and a Golden Spikes Award Golden Standard Performance nominee.
Since being inserted into the starting lineup on Feb. 25, Kyle Butler is 11 for 30 with three multi-hit performances. Butler finished with three RBIs in the Highlanders two-game series with George Mason.
Freshman Spencer Horwitz is currently riding a seven-game hitting streak, going 10 for 30 during the streak. Horwitz has three two-hit games in the streak, scoring seven runs. He leads the team with four two-out RBIs.
Horwitz is 8 for 26 with runners on base and 5 for 14 with runners in scoring position.
Matt Roth has swung a hot bat for the Highlanders of late, collecting five multi-hit games over the last seven games. Roth leads the Highlanders with 16 hits and eight runs scored.
Roth collected three of his four doubles on the season during the George Mason series.
Five different Highlanders have five-plus RBIs on the season.
Richard De la Cruz paces the team with seven RBIs, including three on two hits in a 9-4 win over George Mason on Tuesday. De la Cruz has three multi-RBI games in nine games played.
Tossing 4.1 shutout innings against George Mason on Wednesday, freshman Austin Gerber continues to be the bellcow in the Radford bullpen. Gerber has thrown 14.1 innings in four games, yielding only five earned runs. Opposing batters are only hitting .192 against the righty.

SCOUTING NORTHERN KENTUCKY

Record: 2-8
Last weekend, Northern Kentucky won one of three games at Georgia State, salvaging the series with an 8-7 win on Sunday.
The Norse were outscored 22-10 in the first two games.
Appearing in nine games, Dominic Mercurio posts a .357 average with five RBIs. Will Haueter follows with a .333 average in seven games, ranking second on the team with six RBIs.
Trey Ganns leads the Norse with seven RBIs.
TJ Alas and Jake Richmond are responsible for 10 of Northern Kentucky's 20 RBIs, collecting five each.
Only four Norse have double-digit hits in 10 games as Alas leads the way with 13 hits.
In 10 games, Northern Kentucky has only hit three home runs.
Gains is also a two-way player like Radford's Hrbek. The righty has started three games, holding a 0-2 record and a 9.49 ERA. Gains has allowed 13 earned runs in 12.1 innings, walking 11 batters.
Pat Kelley leads the Norse in innings pitched with 15.0 in three starts, holding a 6.00 ERA. Opponents are hitting .350 off of Kelley.
As a staff, North Kentucky holds an 8.19 team ERA and a .323 batters average against.