PENSACOLA, Fla. --- The University of West Florida baseball team will open play against Auburn Montgomery with a Friday doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. and will conclude with the series finale on Saturday at 12:00 p.m.
 
A Look Back to Last Week
UWF (22-14, 13-8 GSC) played their final home midweek game against Spring Hill (April 4). The game concluded in an eight-inning, 13-3, victory over the Badgers. The team was trailing 3-0 but managed to score a combined 13 runs in the seventh and eighth inning to end early in a 10-run rule. This was the Argos second time winning in early innings this season.
 
The Argos then headed on the road to Carrollton, Georgia to take on the previously ranked No. 17 West Georgia in a conference three-game series. UWF won all three games and gave the Wolves their first losing sweep of the season.
 
In the doubleheader on Thursday (April 6), the Argos hit a combined 25 hits with three players totaling five hits each. In game one, the Wolves scored all five of their runs in the sixth inning, but the Argos pulled away with an 8-5 victory. UWF then followed with a 9-1 win in game two to take the series.
 
UWF shut out West Georgia, 3-0, in the series finale and took their third successful sweep of the season.
 
Rise in the Rankings
Montevallo and West Georgia are tied for first in the Gulf South Conference standings with a conference record of 14-7. West Florida, West Georgia and Alabama Huntsville all sit right below with a 13-8 conference record.
 
UWF has climbed to No. 6 in the NCBWA South Region poll this week and is receiving votes in the Collegiate Newspaper poll.
 
Powerhouse Pitching
UWF's three starting pitchers sit in the top five for best ERA in the conference. Second best in the GSC is Kade Manderscheid (5-1), at a 1.92 earned run average, followed by Dalton Neuschwander (2.48) and Major Posey (2.61) who sit at number four and five in the leader board.
 
Neuschwander is 6-0 on the season and shows to be difficult to hit against. His .199 opposing batting average is the best in the GSC. He has struck out 46 batters – 14 of which were looking – which is also top-10 in the pitching leader boards.
 
Manderscheid's last three outings have been nothing but impressive. All were complete games pitched and two of the three games were against top-25 opponents. He has allowed two runs total in his last 21 innings pitched.
 
Posey's recent times on the mound have allowed UWF to get two victory sweeps and a series win. Sitting at 5-2 on the season, he is a threat to conclude the three-game series. In four of his 11 appearances, he has allowed no runs.
 
About Auburn Montgomery Warhawks
The Warhawks (16-22, 10-11 GSC) are 10^th in the GSC standings. They will take on Albany State Wednesday, April 12 before heading to Pensacola, Florida.
 
Auburn Montgomery took on Saint Leo in a nonconference three-game series last week (April 7). All games resulted in a loss. The most recent GSC opponent was a victory sweep on the road against Mississippi College (April 1).
 
Starting pitchers Clay Slagle and Andrew Cronan are both 3-3 on the season in double digit appearances. Grant Hickman, who just got a save against Mississippi College, is 2-3 and has a 5.40 ERA.
 
Four players are batting an average of .300 or above. First basemen Kasey Clark leads the group with a .369 hitting average. His 55 hits, 13 doubles and two triples are the most of the Warhawks.
 
Auburn Montgomery has hit 19 homeruns that are split between five players. Brody Syer has the most at six, followed by Clark with five.
 
Argos vs. Warhawks History
Since 2006, the Argos are 12-5 in the history record book over the Warhawks. In 2022, UWF took the series win 2-1. The Argos lost the series opener 12-4 but bounced back in the following two games. In the series finale, Trent Jeffcoat and True Fontenot powered UWF to a 9-8 walk-off series win.
 
UWF has a 6-2 record at Jim Spooner Field and averages 7.24 runs a game.