EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville baseball team will put its five-game winning streak on the line on Wednesday night, as the Purple Aces will travel west to Edwardsville, Illinois to take on the SIUE Cougars at Roy E. Lee Field at Simmons Baseball Complex. First-pitch is set for 5 p.m. and the game can be heard on-line through SIUECougarNetwork.com.
Evansville will bring a 12-7 overall record into Wednesday night’s contest. The Purple Aces have won five-straight and 12 of the last 14 games overall after sweeping a weather-shortened two-game series from Purdue over the weekend. Junior catcher Brendan Hord (Lexington, Ky./Paul L. Dunbar) led UE offensively over the weekend with a .556 average, as he went 5-for-9 with a pair of doubles and two RBI in the two contests against Boilermakers.
Overall, fifth-year first baseman Chase Hug (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike/Olney Central) continues to lead UE offensively with a .431 batting average and a .602 on-base percentage. Hug entered the week ranked second in NCAA Division I baseball in terms of on-base percentage, and he has reached base in all 19 games this year and 25-straight games overall dating back to last season.
Graduate student Jarrett Blunt (Ottumwa, Iowa/Univ. of Omaha) is expected to get the start on the mound for UE on Wednesday night. Blunt will be making his second start of the year, and will bring a 2-0 overall record and 2.00 ERA into Wednesday’s game. He is expected to be opposed by SIUE grad student Taylor Bruninga (1-0, 4.76 ERA). Bruninga actually started his collegiate career as a basketball player at Illinois State, and averaged 4.3 points per game in four career games against Evansville for the Redbirds.
UE leads the all-time series over SIUE, 19-10. The Purple Aces have won two-straight in the series, including a 17-10 game played at UE’s German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium last May. Fifth-year outfielder Danny Borgstrom led UE by going 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBI in the contest last May, and Borgstrom has hit safely in his last nine career games against OVC competition.
