SAN ANGELO, Texas – The No.24 Angelo State baseball team will look to close out its non-conference schedule strong with a trip to Golden, Colorado to face the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers for a four game series that begins on Friday, February 26 at 4 p.m. CST.
The Rams will continue its four game series after Friday with a doubleheader on Saturday (1 p.m. CST, 4 p.m. CST) and the final game on Sunday (12 p.m. CST). With ASU picking up a win in the final game of the series and handing Lubbock Christian its first loss of the season, the team currently sits at 6-3 on the season. ASU's defense will enter the weekend series ranked second in the Lone Star Conference with a .972 fielding percentage. The Rams currently hold a 4-0 all-time series lead over the Orediggers, which enters the weekend with a 3-4 overall record for its 2016 season.
Hitters Paxton DeLaGarza and Sam Kohler have led the Rams offensive attack thus far this season. DeLaGarza leads the team and the LSC with six doubles. The senior is currently boasting a .368 average at the plate, with a team leading .684 slugging percentage and a .429 on base percentage. He also leads the team with 11 RBIs and two homers on the year. At the dish, second baseman Kohler is hitting .419 on the season, with a .452 slugging percentage and a team second .525 on base percentage. He has scored a team leading 12 runs and recorded three stolen bases. These two also head up the team's defense as they dominate the middle of the diamond. Kohler leads the team and the conference having turned 10 double plays on the season, with DeLaGarza following closely behind with a recorded six on the season.
Sophomore outfielder Michael Urquidi and junior utility player Christian Abilla have also made their presence known at the plate this season. Urquidi is third on the team with a .333 batting average and leads the squad with a .565 on base percentage. While, Abilla is sporting a .323 average at the plate with a team third 10 hits on the year. The junior has also recorded a team second seven RBIs.
Rounding out the top performers at the plate for ASU is first baseman Jay Gonzalez. After leading the Rams in its last win over the LCU Chaps going 3-for-5 from the plate, the junior is now second on the team with three doubles. He has a tallied a team fourth nine hits on the season and has knocked in a team third five RBIs.
Friday's game one starter, Bryce Zak, has had a strong presence on the mound for the Rams this season. Currently holding a record of 2-0, he leads the team with a recorded 28 strike outs this season. This also ties the senior for first place in the conference in total batters struck out thus far. In 17.2 innings, the senior has given up nine hits and six runs. He is currently sporting a 3.06 ERA.
Graylon Brown has also been a force on the ASU pitching staff as he leads the team with two saves and has a 1-1 record as a starter. The native of Brownwood, Texas is currently in a three-way tie for first in the LSC with zero earned runs scored under his watch and a 0.00 ERA.
Live stats and video will be available for all four games of this series.
