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PENSACOLA, Fla. – The UWF baseball team (2-3) will travel to Columbus State tomorrow for a single game vs. the Cougars (3-1) at 5:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. CT.
UWF baseball (2-3) opened its 2018 home schedule with a doubleheader sweep vs. Rollins (3-2) at Jim Spooner Field Friday, defeating the Tars by finals of 5-1 and 5-3. Tony Kucera and Alex Knight each picked up their first Argo wins, and Joey Bend starred at the plate for UWF, piling up three hits, two runs scored and three RBIs over the two games.
This will be the second road trip of the season for UWF. The team previously traveled to Florida Southern Feb. 2-3. The No. 19 Mocs swept the Argos in a three-game set. West Florida will return home this weekend for the Argo Invitational beginning on Friday.
ARGOS SWEEP ROLLINS DOUBLEHEADER
* UWF got its most effective start of the season so far from lefty Tony Kucera (1-0), who twirled six innings of four-hit, shutout baseball to earn his first win. Kucera struck out three and issued no walks or extra-base hits to key the victory.
* Joey Bend got the scoring started in the first, singling home Mason Dinesen and Nic Strasser, who boarded with a hit-by-pitch and double respectively. Dinesen picked up an RBI in the sixth on a groundout to score Jacob Silverstein to run the lead to 3-0. Robert Lopez scored later in the sixth on a wild pitch to make it 4-0.
* Avery Geyer picked up his first save by retiring all six he faced in the eighth and ninth innings, four via strikeout. Rollins starter Brad Case (1-1), who was tagged for four runs (two earned) over 5.2 innings suffered the loss. Argo pitching allowed just two Tars to reach scoring position.
* LHP Kirk Maddox got the start for the Argos in Game 2. He pitched into the fifth, allowing just one run (one earned) while striking out three and allowing two walks. The Argo bats built him the lead in the second on an RBI single by Bryant Harris Jr. and then added to the early advantage in the fourth. Bend doubled to start that frame and eventually scored on a balk by Rollins starter Cameron Enck.
* Argo pitching allowed nine walks but also stranded a season-high 14 baserunners. The Tars outhit the Argos 6-5. Each team finished the game with two errors.
KUCERA CONTINUES EXCELLENT START
* Tony Kucera has now made two starts in the 2018 season. The newcomer transfer from Lurleen B. Wallace started the season opener against No. 19 Florida Southern. He took a no-decision, going five innings while surrendering two runs (one earned) and striking out seven. He allowed five hits and one walk. He spearheaded a trio of Argo pitchers who struck out 14.
* Kucera did not allow a man into scoring position vs. Rollins. The lefty used 77 pitches over the course of six innings vs. the Tars. He helped to pick one man off of first and induced a double play to face just two over the minimum (20).
* Kucera is currently the only GSC pitcher with more than 10 innings pitched and an ERA less than 1.00.
BEND ENJOYS BIG DEBUT
* Joey Bend enjoyed a nice debut performance at UWF Friday, powering the Argo offense. He went 2 for 3 in Game 1 vs. the Tars, knocking in the game's first two runs in the first inning with a base hit. Bend added a double, another RBI and two runs scored in Game 2.
* All in all, Bend knocked in or scored five of the ten runs that UWF scored in the doubleheader.
* Bend hit .304 across 51 games at Wallace CC - Dothan, posting one home run and 25 RBIs. He had six doubles and two triples. He scored 30 runs in his final season in the NJCAA.
* Bend is a graduate of Sandalwood High in Jacksonville. He was a 2015 Perfect Game Florida Region Honorable Mention and a 2014 Perfect Game Underclass All-American Honorable Mention.
ESTRADA REACHES IN FIVE STRAIGHT
* Freshman Matthew Estrada is the only Argos to reach in all five games so far this season. The Pensacola Catholic alum has three hits and five walks in the season-opening stretch.
* Estrada drew a walk in Game 1 vs. Rollins and then picked up a double and an RBI against the Tars in Game 2.
SCOUTING COLUMBUS STATE
* The Cougars are managed by Greg Appleton. The skipper is in his 21st season as the manager at CSU. He is 727-396 as the manager of the Cougars.
* McClellan hit .381 last season with 14 home runs and 60 RBIs. He earned a cavalcade of honors, including selections to the ABCA All-America Second Team, NCBWA All-Americam team (Honorable Mention), ABCA All-Southeast Region First Team, NCBWA All-Southeast Region First Team, D2CCA All-Southeast Region Second Team and the All-Peach Belt Conference First Team.
* McClellan is one of seven starters returning from last year's CSU team, which finished 29-21 overall. The Cougars qualified for the Peach Belt Conference Tournament as the fourth-seed but lost both of its tournament games.
* The Cougars were picked to be the fifth seed this season in the PBC.
* The Argos are 10-11 vs. Columbus State since 1991. Since 2007, the Argos and Cougars have met in a total of ten series. The Argos have four series wins and four series splits. In that span, UWF is 10-10 vs. CSU. UWF is 6-5 at Columbus State since 2007. The Argos have won both single-game series the teams have played.
ARGO INVITATIONAL
* UWF Baseball will host the Argo Invitational beginning Friday, Feb. 16. The day will open with a 2:00 p.m. contest between Spring Hill and Palm Beach Atlantic. The Argos will take on No. 5 Tampa at 6:00 p.m.
* Saturday will feature a 1:00 p.m. game between Tampa and Spring Hill. The Argos will battle Palm Beach Atlantic at 5:00 p.m.
* The Invitational will wrap Sunday with Palm Beach Atlantic and Tampa tangling at 11:00 a.m. UWF will take on Spring Hill at 3:00 p.m.
2017 IN REVIEW
* UWF finished the 2017 season with a 28-23 overall record. The team was 17-15 in conference play. The Argos finished with an above-.500 record on the road and a below-.500 record at home for the first time in the tenure of Mike Jeffcoat (2006-present). The Argos were 13-8 away and 13-14 at home. They were also 2-1 on neutral fields.
* The Argos qualified for the GSC Tournament for a ninth straight season. UWF was the 6-seed in the tournament. The team fell in the opener to 3-seed North Alabama before rebounding for wins vs. 2-seed West Alabama and 7-seed Mississippi College.
* UWF loses 11 seniors from last year's squad. The list of graduating seniors includes 2nd Team All-GSC selection Ladeavon Matthews, who hit .354 with four home runs and 32 RBIs. He was the only Argo to start all 51 games last season.
* This year's UWF squad will feature 12 returners from the 2017 roster. This year's team features 12 returners, including six starters from 2017: catchers Matt Sullivan and Trevor Payne, outfielder Brandon Harmon, infielders Nic Strasser and Robert Lopez, plus infielder/outfielder Nick Kerkmann. Kerkmann, Harmon and Strasser all hit above .300 for last year's team.
* Among pitchers, UWF returns Jared Middleton, Trace Penton, and Jared Gonzalez. All three pitchers made at least four starts and at least 15 appearances. All three had ERAs of 3.62 or lower.
* The Argos concluded 2017 with the fifth-highest average in the conference, batting .290 as a team. UWF had the second-lowest ERA in the GSC at 3.92. The Argos tied for third in the Gulf South in fielding percentage at .959.
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