The Falcons baseball team will continue its non-conference play against the Murray State Thoroughbreds this weekend, with 3 p.m. games on Friday and Saturday, and a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday. Following a series win against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers to open the 2013 season, here’s four things to look for as the Falcons head to Kentucky:
1. Hot start
Through three games, the team’s 2-1 start against the Hilltoppers this past weekend marks the strongest start for Falcon baseball since 2007. In the past four seasons, the Falcons had dropped the first three games each year. Of 10 MAC schools, only BG has notched two victories through a week into the season. During non-conference play thus far, the MAC is a combined 7-25. The Falcons will hope to continue their strong start in their next series.
2. Apthorpe staying strong
Redshirt junior Cody Apthorpe, team co-captain, is the projected game one starter on Friday afternoon. In his opening day start, Apthorpe went four innings against the Hilltoppers, surrendering just two earned runs off four hits. He also struck out five batters and walked one. Apthorpe, who received a medical redshirt last year after injuring his arm, will look to build off his first start against the Thoroughbreds.
3. Catch and throw
The Falcons had a slow defensive start to their season against the Hilltoppers, making seven errors in three games. With just a .934 fielding percentage, the Falcons will hope to improve their defense this weekend. Last season, the team went 7-1 when they didn’t make an error. In games they made at least one error, they went just 13-32.
4. Veteran presence
Despite winning two of three against Western Kentucky, the Falcons offense struggled at times, batting just .155 as a team in the series. A trio of veterans, Jeremy Shay, Jake Thomas, and Logan Walker, all juniors, batted a collective 2-28 in the opening weekend. Shay record four of the group’s five walks that series, but their .212 on-base percentage from primarily the middle of the lineup may spur the veterans to get on base more often off of Thoroughbreds pitching.
