WKU begins a busy week of baseball with two midweek contests
Western Kentucky, who was been on the road for its last four games, returns home Tuesday afternoon for a midweek contest vs. Belmont at Nick Denes Field.
The Hilltoppers (18-17 overall, 6-9 Conference USA) and Bruins (20-15 overall, 9-6 Ohio Valley Conference) will meet under sunny skies and on a warm diamond, with first pitch set at 6 p.m. CT.
After Tuesday's affair, WKU will then quickly hit the road, again, for a Wednesday night matchup at Evansville. First pitch is also set for 6 p.m.
In midweek showdowns this season, Western hold a 5-3 record. Two of the five victories came over the two teams the Tops will meet for second encounters this week.
WKU beat Belmont, 10-4, back in March in Nashville, and held on for a 6-5 victory over the Purple Aces at The Nick on April 5. In those two meetings, sophomore Kaleb Duckworth led the way for head coach John Pawlowski's club.
The sophomore outfielder combined to go 4-for-9 with three RBIs, three runs, a double and a homerun. Against Belmont, Duckworth drove in five runs - which is the most by a Hilltopper in a game so far this season, and hit a three-run homer. In the contest in Music City, third baseman Danny Hudzina was also consistent - going 4-for-4 with two RBIs, two runs scored, a double and a walk.
Right-handed pitcher Cody Coll will be on the mound for WKU in the first meeting of the week. Coll, who has boasts a record of 1-2 and has an ERA of 5.70, picked up his first win of the year against Evansville. In that last start, Coll held the Aces to three runs in over five innings of throwing. Right-hander Dylan King (0-1, 22.50 ERA) will get the first tosses for the Bruins.
Wednesday's starters have yet to be announced.
In order to be victorious in these two midweek games, the Hilltoppers will have to hold both clubs, who are both two of the top slugging teams in the nation, to less than what they are usually allowed.
Belmont is tied for 16th and Evansville is tied for 22nd in the hitting category. Both squads are also ranked in the Top 25 in homeruns. The two units have combined for 75 long balls in 2016, while the Bruins sit at 13th in collegiate baseball in runs scored with 290.
Evansville won two out of three against Bradley this past weekend at home, while Belmont dropped a pair at Austin Peay.
Western will host Texas-San Antonio in a Conference USA weekend series after the midweek showdowns, beginning Friday at 6 p.m. The Tops and Roadrunners meet again Saturday at 3 p.m. before concluding the series Sunday at Noon.
--Follow InsideHilltopperSports.com lead columnist Tyler Mansfield on Twitter at Twitter.com/sportsmansfield.--