Baseball Prepares for Weekend Series in Evansville

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Belmont (20-26, 9-9 MVC) travels to Evansville (14-29, 8-10 MVC) for a three-game MVC series against the Purple Aces. Fans can listen to the action from German American Bank Field on Belmont Bruins Radio with Rich Tiner. Friday's series opener will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
Series Overview
Friday, May 2 – 6 p.m.
Watch | Listen | Live Stats
Belmont: RHP Joe Ruzicka (4-2, 3.36 ERA)
Evansville: LHP Kenton Deverman (2-6, 5.47 ERA)
 
Saturday, May 3 – 2 p.m.
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Belmont: RHP Zane Brown (2-4, 7.40 ERA)
Evansville: LHP Kevin Reed (3-5, 6.21 ERA)
 
Sunday, May 4 – 1 p.m.
Listen | Live Stats
Belmont: RHP Jake Timbes (2-2, 5.31 ERA)
Evansville: TBD
 
Bruin Bullets

• Pete Daniel leads the Bruins in batting average (.366), hits (63), slugging percentage (.547) and on-base percentage (.438).
• Michael Lareau continues to play his best baseball in conference play. The outfielder leads the team with a .375 batting average in 16 MVC games and is batting .464 in the last 10 games.
• Mike Sprockett leads the team with nine home runs.
• Following a historic weekend sweep over Evansville, Belmont rides a four-game win streak into Evansville. In game two (April 26), Zane Brown recorded the 12^th no-hitter in program history. His performance earned him NCBWA National Pitcher of the Week, TSWA Pitcher of the Week and MVC Pitcher of the Week honors. It was the first no-hitter since the combined no-no by James Buckelew and Greg Brody on April 5, 2014, against UT Martin. Brown's performance was the first no-hitter by a single pitcher since Lance Sewell's gem against Martin Methodist on April 17, 1997. Brown set a new career high with nine strikeouts and picked up his second win of the season. The last time a pitcher in the MVC threw a no-hitter was Indiana State's Jason Van Skike on March 5, 2011. 
• The weekend sweep over Valparaiso was also the first time in program history the Bruins swept an opponent in a series without surrendering a run. Belmont pitchers allowed just six hits in 26 innings with 21 strikeouts.
• Belmont leads the MVC and ranks 40^th in Division I with 90 stolen bases, 28 more than Southern Illinois in second. The Bruins are the only team in the MVC to attempt 100+ stolen bases, with an 80.3% success rate on 112 attempts.  

Scouting Report: Evansville Purple Aces

• Sophomore left-handed pitcher Kenton Deverman struck out a career-high 10 batters in his last start against Missouri State. He leads the MVC in strikeout-to-walk ratio and walks per nine innings.
• Freshman Jack McGhee leads Evansville with a .357 batting average in 12 games.
• Evansville is 6-6 at home this season.

Matchup History

• Belmont is 18-5 all-time against Evansville.
• Evansville won last season's series in Nashville, but the Bruins avoided a sweep with a 12-0 seven-inning run-rule win in Sunday's series finale.

 
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