Game Notes

CANYON, Texas – The No. 7/8 West Texas A&M baseball team returns to the field as it hosts Cameron in Lone Star Conference series Saturday through Monday at Wilder Park.  The Buffs are 26-7 overall and a perfect 8-0 in LSC play, while Cameron is 15-20 overall and 5-7 in league play.
 
HOW TO CATCH THE GAMES - Links to live stats and audio/video streaming are available on the baseball schedule page at www.gobuffsgo.com all season long.  All home games this season will have audio commentary from James Hadnot as links also on the baseball schedule page.
 
WT RANKED IN NCBWA TOP 25 - WT moved up in both the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Top 25 and the Collegiate Baseball News poll.  The Buffs are seventh in the Collegiate Baseball News poll and eighth in the NCBWA.  WT leads the South Central Region rankings in the NCBWA poll this week, after being second last week.
 
NEEDED WEEK OFF - The Buffs bye week came at the right time last week as it afforded the team to get some rest and get healthy heading into the final month of the regular season.  WT has been a bit banged up, especially on the mound as a lot of players have seen a lot of action this season due to the injuries. 
 
AMARO NAMED PLAYER OF THE MONTH - Senior Luis Amaro was named the Platinum Cuts Player of the Month for March as he was almost unstoppable at the plate during the month of March as the senior infielder hit .394 in 20 starts for the Buffs as he was 28-of-71 from the plate. The Roselle Park, New Jersey product scored a team-high 28 runs with a team-high 10 doubles and eight home runs to drive in 35 RBI for an incredible slugging percentage of .873 while tallying an on-base percentage of .483.  Amaro was named Lone Star Conference Hitter of the Week three times during the month for the Buffs as he helped lead WT to a 15-5 record in March including a perfect 8-0 start to league action.
 
VANDERBURG HITS MILESTONES - WT tenth year head coach Matt Vanderburg recorded his school-record 300th win at WT and 400th win overall in the series at UT Permian Basin last month.  Vanderburg now is 303-198 (.605) at WT and 402-265 (.603) all-time in 13 seasons of coaching.
 
RECAPPING UTPB SERIES - The Buffs were put to the test by the upset-minded Falcons on the road the last time out as WT opened the series with a convincing 10-1 win, but the Falcons roared back as two of the final three games went to extra-innings and the Buffs trailed in the final three contests  of the series.  The finale went a season-high 12 innings and school-record 5:10 of time as WT scored four runs in the top of the 12th for the win and the series sweep.   WT hit .305 for the series on 46 of 151 with 37 runs scored, nine doubles and two home runs, while driving in 33.  The team slugged .404 and reached base at a .438 clip.  Eight errors led to five unearned runs for the Falcons in the series.  Senior Jimmy Cubillos was clutch for the Buffs as he hit .529 with nine hits in 17 at bats, scoring a team-high seven runs with one double and five RBI.  He slugged .588 and reached base at a .636 clip with four walks and a hit batsmen.  Junior Christian Loya belted two home runs for the Buffs in the series as he had seven hits, six runs scored and a team-high nine RBI.  Five Buffs hit over .300 for the series.  On the mound, WT had a 3.23 ERA and held UTPB to a .273 average from the dish.  The Falcons recorded 42 hits, scored 19 runs, recorded 12 doubles and two triples, while driving in 14.  Both teams pitched 38.0 innings, as the Buffs recorded 15 walks and 35 strikeouts with three hit batsmen, while UTPB plunked the Buffs 17 times.  Junior reliever Dominic Yearego earned a win in relief as did senior Tate Huebner, while junior starters Joe Corbett and Darin Cook also recorded wins.  Corbett paced the team with seven strikeouts, while junior Brayden Baker recorded a save.  WT outscored UTPB 8-1 in extra-innings and scored in all but the second inning in the series.  WT outscored UTPB 10-4 in the final three innings.
 
LOOKING AT THE LSC - WT leads the league standings with an 8-0 record following the bye week.  Tarleton State is second at 8-4 and has its bye week the last week of the regular season, while Angelo State is 7-5 and is on a bye this week.  Texas A&M-Kingsville is 4-4, followed by Cameron at 5-7, UTPB is 2-6 and Eastern New Mexico is 2-10.  The top four teams earn a berth in the LSC Championship at the site of the regular season champion. 
 
NINE-STRAIGHT WINS - The Buffs currently are the owners of a nine-game winning streak, marking the longest this season and matching the longest in program history set last season to open the 2017 campaign.  The nine-game winning streak ranks tied for fifth nationally in current winning streaks in NCAA Division II.
 
ABOUT CAMERON -  The Aggies enter the week after going 2-2 against UT Permian Basin last week in Lawton, Okla.  The Aggies are hitting .255 on the season in 35 games with 267 hits, 172 runs scored, 52 doubles, eight triples, 14 home runs and 143 RBI.  The team is slugging .360 and reaching base at a .378 clip with 163 walks, but has fanned 290 times, while committing 57 errors leading to 34 unearned runs.  On the mound, the Aggies have a 6.48 ERA in 277.2 innings, allowing 339 hits (.300 opp. ba.) 234 runs - 200 earned, walked 156 and fanned 231.  Individually, the Aggies are led by Michael Flohr who leads the team with a .337 average as he has 28 hits, 11 runs scored, four doubles, one triple and driven in 12.  He his slugging .410 and reaching base at a .471 clip.  Luke Hughes is second in average at a .301 clip tying for the team-lead in hits with 37, along with eight doubles, two triples, two home runs and 21 RBI.  Cole Williams also has 37 hits with a team-high 14 doubles, five home runs and 27 RBI for the year as he is hitting .285.  On the mound, Reid Garrett is 6-2 with a 4.13 ERA in nine starts and a team-high 56.2 innings.  He has allowed 55 hits, 29 runs - 26 earned, walked 31 and fanned 46.  Skyler Henderson is 3-2 with a 4.08 ERA to lead the team.  He has 17 appearances with 39.2 innings pitched.  Andrew Garcia (1-5) is second in innings pitched with 56 and has a team-high three complete games.  Henderson leads the team with three saves. Cameron head coach Brady Huston is 76-61 in his third season at the helm of the program.  He is 3-7 against WT. 
 
INSIDE THE SERIES WITH CAMERON  -  WT leads the all-time series with Cameron 39-34 and has won 12 of the last 15 in the series.  The Buffs went 1-1 against Cameron last year as the series was shortened in Lawton due to inclement weather.  WT went 5-2 against the Aggies in 2016, winning two of three in Canyon.  WT head coach Matt Vanderburg is 26-17 against Cameron. 
 
NATIONALLY SPEAKING - The Buffs lead the LSC and are 28th nationally in batting average at a .318 clip, while ranking 13th nationally in doubles and first in the league with 80.  WT is 13th nationally and second in the league in hit batsmen with 57, while ranking second in the league in hits with 343.  WT is third in the LSC in home runs with 28 and ninth nationally in on base percentage at a .425 clip for second in the conference.  The Buffs are 20th nationally in runs (281) to lead the league, while ranking 13th in sacrifice flies (23) and 15th in scoring (8.5) both leading the conference.  WT is third in the LSC in slugging percentage at a .489 clip for 36th nationally, while ranking second in the league and 48th nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.39) and first in the league in strikeouts per game at 9.9 for 16th nationally.  WT is third in the league in triples with 10, ranking 40th nationally.  Individually, Amaro ranks sixth nationally in walks with 34 to lead the league, while ranking 22nd nationally in doubles with 14 to also lead the conference.  He leads the LSC in home runs with nine, while ranking third in the league in runs (40), 16th nationally and second in the LSC in RBI (45) and second in the LSC in slugging percentage at a . 722 clip.  Junior Christian Loya  is 24th nationally and second in the LSC in hit by pitch, while ranking fifth in the league in slugging percentage at a .640 clip for second on the team.  Senior Nick Canas is third in the LSC in doubles with 12, while ranking 25th nationally and second in the LSC in triples with four.  He leads the LSC and is 45th nationally in sacrifice flies with four.  Corbett is second in the LSC and 49th nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio at a 5.25 clip, while ranking second in the LSC and 49th nationally in strikeouts with 63.  He is third in the LSC in strikeouts per nine innings at 11.05, while junior Darin Cook is fourth in the LSC in strikeouts with 54.  Cook and Corbett each have six wins on the season for third in the LSC and 27th nationally.
 
BUFFS PICKED SECOND IN LSC POLL -  The Buffs were picked second in the preseason Lone Star Conference Poll, released by the league office.  The Buffs garnered four first-place votes and 122 points behind league-favorite Angelo State with 12, first-place nods and 133 points.  Texas A&M-Kingsville was picked third with  two first-place votes and 107 points.  Tarleton State was fourth with the remaining three  top votes and 94 points, while Eastern New Mexico was fifth with 57 points, followed by Cameron (51) and UT Permian Basin was seventh with 24 points.
  
GETTIN' ON BASE - Byan and Cubillos have reached safely in the last six games, while Canas has reached in the last five.  Junior Tag Baxter and senior Brandon Marrero have reached each in the last seven games for the longest current streak on the team.
 
HITS, HITS, HITS - Cubillos and senior Bodie Bryan each have recorded hits in the last six games to currently lead the team. Canas has recorded hits in the last five contests.  Loya had a season-high 10-game hitting streak earlier in the year and has hit safely in the last four games.
 
STRONG IN 4th AND 7TH - The Buffs have outscored the opposition 55-26 in the fourth inning and 44-21 in the seventh for the largest margins of the season.  WT also has outscored the opposition 12-1 in extra innings, going 6-0 this season in free baseball. 
 
LOOKING AHEAD - Following the series against Cameron, the Buffs return to the road playing at Tarleton State next weekend.  WT swept a four-game, non-conference series against Tarleton State back in March in Canyon. 
 
YEAREGO PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA - Junior Dominic Yearego was named Preseason NCBWA Third Team All-America announced Thursday by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.  Yearego earned NCBWA Preseason First Team All-Region honors as a relief pitcher this year.  He finished his sophomore campaign in stellar fashion as he went 6-0 with a 2.03 ERA and six saves in 24 appearances.  Yearego pitched 57.2 innings on the year as his 2.03 ERA ranked 26th nationally and second in the LSC.
 
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