CANYON, Texas – The No. 23 West Texas A&M baseball team looks to get back on the winning track as it returns home to host No. 30 Angelo State this weekend in a four-game, non-conference series, beginning Friday evening at 6:30 p.m. at Wilder Park.
 
Fans can access links to live stats and audio/video streaming of the series at www.gobuffsgo.com on the baseball schedule page.  James Hadnot will have the call of the home games on the webstream all season long. 
 
The Buffs are 16-5 and are coming off a disappointing 1-3 weekend series at Texas A&M-Kingsville.  WT hit a season-low .243 for the week on 33 of 136, while scoring 20 runs, with 10 doubles, one triple and drove in 18.  The team slugged .331 and reached base at a .333 clip with 15 walks and five hit batsmen.  Senior Bodie Bryan went 4 of 17 from the dish with a team-high three doubles and five RBI, while scoring two runs.  Junior Tag Baxter hit .571 with four hits, one double, two RBI and scored one run to lead the team in average.  He slugged .714 and reached base at a .556 clip.  As a team the Buffs left 33 stranded and committed five errors leading to three unearned runs.
 
On the bump, the Buffs had a 7.64 ERA in 33 innings, allowing 46 hits, 31 runs – 28 earned, walked 13 and fanned 26 as the Javelinas hit .343 against WT.  Junior reliever Dominic Yearego picked up the win in the Buffs' 8-5, 11-inning victory in the first game of a doubleheader last Saturday.  Yearego went 4.2 innings, allowing four hits, one earned run, walked one and fanned seven.  Senior starter Ryan Larison went five innings, allowing one hit, one earned run, walked two and fanned four as he didn't factor into the decision.  Junior Joe Corbett and senior Noah Draper struggled in their starts, allowing a combined eight hits, nine earned runs, four walks and six strikeouts in 5.1 innings combined.
 
Angelo State enters with a 17-5 record overall, riding a nine-game winning streak and boasts the top pitching staff in the LSC with a 2.87 ERA as teams are hitting just .203 against it.  The Rams are led on the mound, by Tyler Lesley, Shane Browning, Trent Baker and Carson Childers as Childers is 3-0 with a 2.57 ERA in 28 innings, allowing 11 hits, eight earned runs, walked 18 and fanned 29.  Lesley has pitched a team-best 40.2 innings, with a 5-1 record and a 1.55 ERA.  He has allowed 27 hits, nine runs – seven earned, walked six and fanned 30.  Baker is 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA in 16 innings, with eight walks and 25 strikeouts, while Browning is 2-2 with a 3.98 ERA in 31.2 innings and has walked nine and fanned 28.  Kellen Rholl leads the team with five saves on the year in 12 innings with 21 strikeouts.
 
The Rams have two complete games with three shutouts and nine saves on the year in 182 innings, allowing 131 hits, 78 runs – 58 earned, walked 74 and fanned 187.  The team has allowed 27 doubles, no triples and 16 home runs, while 25 errors have led to 20 unearned runs.
 
Offensively, the Rams are hitting over .300 for the first time this season and average seven runs per game.  Five Rams are hitting over .300, including Nicholas Novak who leads the team at a .368 clip, while scoring 20 runs and driving in 19.  Michael Urquidi is second in average at a .338 clip, while recording 25 hits with four doubles, one triple and has scored 25 runs to lead the team and driven in 14.  He leads the team with 17 stolen bases in 21 attempts.  Andrew Morales and Jacob Boston each are hitting over .300 also at .333 and .329, respectively, as the duo has a combined four home runs with Boston leading the team with three round-trippers and ranking second on the team in hits with 27 and tying for the team-lead in doubles with six. 
 
As a team, the Rams are hitting .300 with 206 hits in 687 at bats, along with scoring 163 runs with 31 doubles, four triples, eight home runs and driven in 137.  The team is slugging .392 and reaching base at a .423 clip, while running wild on the base paths, going 62 of 82. 
 
Angelo State leads the all-time series with WT 48-27, but the Buffs have won six of the last nine, including three-straight to win the Lone Star Conference tournament championship and a win in the NCAA South Central Regional last season.  ASU won three of four during conference play in Canyon last season.
 
For the season, the Buffs are hitting .308 in 21 games with 206 hits in 669 at bats.  WT has scored 166 runs with 51 doubles, six triples and 14 home runs, while driving in 145.  The Buffs are slugging .465, while reaching base at a .419 clip with 108 walks and 31 hit batsmen.  WT is 24-31 in stolen bases, and has committed 25 errors leading to 20 unearned runs for a .965 fielding percentage.
 
Individually, junior Tag Baxter leads the team in average at a .455 clip as he is 15 of 33 from the dish with 11 runs scored, four doubles, one home run and 12 RBI.  Senior Nick Canas leads the team with 28 hits and a .373 average in 21 starts, while recording seven doubles, a team-high three triples, two home runs and 20 RBI.  He is slugging a team-best .627 and reaching base at a .457 clip.  Junior Christian Loya is hitting .333 on the year with 18 hits, 13 runs scored, four doubles and is tied with junior Justice Nakagawa for the team-lead in home runs with three.  In all, six players are hitting .300 or better for the Buffs this season.
 
On the mound, WT boasts a 4.03 ERA in 172 innings, allowing 153 hits, 97 runs – 77 earned, walked 87 and fanned 212.  Teams are hitting .235 against WT and the squad has one complete game with two shutouts and six saves.  Junior reliever Braden Baker leads the team with a 3-0 record and a 2.37 ERA in 19 innings of work and eight appearances.  He has allowed 14 hits, five earned runs, walked seven and fanned 29 for fourth on the team.  Among starters, junior Joe Corbett is 4-1 with a 3.16 ERA in five starts, with one shutout and one complete game.  He has pitched a team-high 31.1 innings, allowing 20 hits, 11 earned runs, walked eight and fanned a team-best 46 as teams are hitting just .186 against him.  Larison is 3-0 with 3.94 ERA in 29.2 innings, while junior Darin Cook is 3-1 with a 3.3 ERA in 30 innings and is second on the team in strikeouts with 39.  Baker and junior Dominic Yearego lead the team with two saves each.
 
WT head coach Matt Vanderburg is in his 10^th season at the helm of the Buffs as he is 293-196 at WT and is 26-32 against Angelo State.  Vanderburg is in his 13^th season overall of coaching and is 392-263. 
 
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