Tuesday, May 23
Clearwater, Fla.
2:30 p.m.
Tulane University
vs
USF
Baseball Opens American Athletic Conference Championship vs. USF Tuesday
May 22, 2017 | Baseball
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CLEARWATER, Fla. – Tulane baseball opens the 2017 American Athletic Conference Championship against USF at 2:30 p.m. CT Tuesday at Spectrum Field in Clearwater, Fla.
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The fifth-seeded Green Wave enter the tournament at 27-29 overall and 13-11 in conference play, while the fourth-seeded Bulls come in at 40-15 overall and 14-10 in league play. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network, and broadcast on 88.3 FM WRBH and TuneIn Radio, and live stats will be available at http://bit.ly/2r7ZIwW.
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Series History
This will be the 54th meeting between Tulane and USF. Tulane leads the series, 32-21. The Green Wave has won seven of eight in the series, including two of three this season, back on March 31-April 2, in New Orleans. Tulane won, 6-4 and 4-3, before the Bulls won the third game, 7-5. The Wave won seven in a row, dating back to a three-game sweep last season in Tampa. The Wave won two of three in New Orleans in 2015, their first as a member of The American. Tulane and USF played each year from 1992-2005 as members of the Metro Conference and then Conference USA.
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Quick Notes
• The Green Wave leads The American with 66 home runs and 62 defensive double plays. Tulane ranks first in the nation in double plays.
• Senior Hunter Williams has played in all 56 games, and he has multiple hits in 28 of them, while Witherspoon has multiple hits in 21 of 54 games.
• Senior Hunter Hope has 12 home runs this season, and has hit double digit home runs in consecutive years (14 in 2016)
• Hope and fellow senior Jarret DeHart lead the team with 12 home runs apiece, while Williams has 10 home runs, and Lex Kaplan and Jake Willsey each have nine homers. DeHart leads the team with 46 RBI.
• Williams: In his last 40 games, he has hit .382 with 32 RBI, 39 runs, 24 extra base hits (15 doubles, 8 HR), .624 SLG%, .424 OBP. . . . In his last 89 games, dating back to April 8, 2016, Williams has hit .346 (124-for-358) with 70 RBI, 19 home runs and 28 doubles.
• Lex Kaplan: Since starting the season 1-for-22 (0-for his first 21), he has hit .335 (55-for-164) with 27 RBI, 38 runs, 16 doubles, nine home runs, 26 walks, a .598 SLG% and a .439 OBP.
• Grant Brown: Leads the team in conference play with .383 avg; has 18 RBI in 17 games, 10 extra base hits (5 2B, 5 HR), .717 SLG%, .457 OBP . . . Last 20 Games: .397 avg (29-73), 29 hits, 21 RBI, 16 runs, 6 doubles, 6 home runs, 15 walks, .726 SLG%, .494 OBP (1.220 OPS), 3-for-3 stolen bases.
• J.P. France: Conference play: 4-1, 2.19 ERA … Last 3 Starts: 2-1, 1.42 ERA, 25.1 IP, 20 K, 7 BB, 8 R, 4 ER, .196 Opp. Avg. . . . Has made 14 starts, and pitched at least 6.0 innings in 12 of them. In those 12 starts (subtracting a 3.0-inning outing in which he allowed eight runs at UCSB), France has compiled a 2.96 ERA with 63 strikeouts, 23 walks and 28 earned runs in 85.0 innings.
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Williams Named American Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year; Brown on Second Team
Senior first baseman Hunter Williams was named the American Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year and a unanimous first-team all-conference selection, and redshirt junior outfielder Grant Brown was selected to the second-team in a vote by the league's coaches. It is the first all-conference honor for both players. Williams is the eighth Tulane player to earn conference Player of the Year honors, and the first since Mark Hamilton was Conference USA Player of the Year in 2006.
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Strength of Schedule
Tulane's schedule ranks No. 15 in the nation, according to the NCAA, while it's RPI sits at No. 74, as of May 22. The Green Wave is 10-9 vs. the RPI Top-25 and 14-11 vs. the RPI Top-50. Tulane's RPI ranking has moved up 195 spots since March 14, when the Wave had a 3-12 record and an RPI of 269. Only five teams have more than Tulane's 14 Top-50 wins – No. 3 Florida (21), No. 8 LSU (20), No. 2 North Carolina (19), No. 7 Kentucky (18), and No. 14 Arkansas (15).
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Double 'Em Up
Tulane leads the NCAA with 62 double plays turned – 14 more than the next team in the league. Tulane's average of 1.11 double plays per game ranks sixth. Second baseman Jake Willsey has spun 50 double plays this season, while shortstops Sal Gozzo and Kody Hoese have spurred 35 and 12 doubles plays, respectively. First baseman Hunter Williams has been in on 59 twin killings.
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Going Deep
The Green Wave have hit 66 home runs this season – tops in The American – including five against Memphis on May 18, four against Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 21, and four against Nicholls State on April 11. Three players have double figure home runs: Jarret DeHart and Hunter Hope lead the team with 12 homers, while Hunter Williams has 10 homers. Jake Willsey and Lex Kaplan each have nine home runs. The total of 66 home runs ties the 2016 team to rank 11th in program history, which is the most since the 2005 squad hit 85 home runs.
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Pitching Matchups
Tuesday
Tulane:Â RHP Corey Merrill, Sr. | 6-5, 4.88 ERA, 14 APP, 13 GS, 79.1 IP, 85 H, 43 ER, 65 K, 39 BB
USF:Â Â Â RHP Phoenix Sanders, Sr. | 5-2, 2.83 ERA, 14 APP, 14 GS, 86.0 IP, 79 H, 27 ER, 99 K, 22 BB
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RollWithUs   RollWave
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| TULANE (27-29, 13-11 American) vs. USF (40-15, 14- 11 American) | |
| Time/Date: | Tuesday, May 23, 2017 • 2:30 p.m. CT |
| Location: | Spectrum Field • Clearwater, Fla. |
| TV: | CBS Sports Network (Carter Blackburn and Danny Graves) |
| Radio: | 88.3 FM WRBH/TuneIn Radio |
| Live Stats/Live Audio: | TulaneGreenWave.com |
| Twitter: | @GreenWaveBSB |
| Instagram: | TulaneBaseball |
| Series: | Tulane leads, 32-21 |
| Tulane Coach: | Travis Jewett (Washington State, '93) • 25-28 (1st year) |
| USF Coach: | Mark Kingston (North Carolina, '95) • 98-74-1 (third year) |
| Game Notes: | Tulane |
CLEARWATER, Fla. – Tulane baseball opens the 2017 American Athletic Conference Championship against USF at 2:30 p.m. CT Tuesday at Spectrum Field in Clearwater, Fla.
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The fifth-seeded Green Wave enter the tournament at 27-29 overall and 13-11 in conference play, while the fourth-seeded Bulls come in at 40-15 overall and 14-10 in league play. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network, and broadcast on 88.3 FM WRBH and TuneIn Radio, and live stats will be available at http://bit.ly/2r7ZIwW.
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Series History
This will be the 54th meeting between Tulane and USF. Tulane leads the series, 32-21. The Green Wave has won seven of eight in the series, including two of three this season, back on March 31-April 2, in New Orleans. Tulane won, 6-4 and 4-3, before the Bulls won the third game, 7-5. The Wave won seven in a row, dating back to a three-game sweep last season in Tampa. The Wave won two of three in New Orleans in 2015, their first as a member of The American. Tulane and USF played each year from 1992-2005 as members of the Metro Conference and then Conference USA.
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Quick Notes
• The Green Wave leads The American with 66 home runs and 62 defensive double plays. Tulane ranks first in the nation in double plays.
• Senior Hunter Williams has played in all 56 games, and he has multiple hits in 28 of them, while Witherspoon has multiple hits in 21 of 54 games.
• Senior Hunter Hope has 12 home runs this season, and has hit double digit home runs in consecutive years (14 in 2016)
• Hope and fellow senior Jarret DeHart lead the team with 12 home runs apiece, while Williams has 10 home runs, and Lex Kaplan and Jake Willsey each have nine homers. DeHart leads the team with 46 RBI.
• Williams: In his last 40 games, he has hit .382 with 32 RBI, 39 runs, 24 extra base hits (15 doubles, 8 HR), .624 SLG%, .424 OBP. . . . In his last 89 games, dating back to April 8, 2016, Williams has hit .346 (124-for-358) with 70 RBI, 19 home runs and 28 doubles.
• Lex Kaplan: Since starting the season 1-for-22 (0-for his first 21), he has hit .335 (55-for-164) with 27 RBI, 38 runs, 16 doubles, nine home runs, 26 walks, a .598 SLG% and a .439 OBP.
• Grant Brown: Leads the team in conference play with .383 avg; has 18 RBI in 17 games, 10 extra base hits (5 2B, 5 HR), .717 SLG%, .457 OBP . . . Last 20 Games: .397 avg (29-73), 29 hits, 21 RBI, 16 runs, 6 doubles, 6 home runs, 15 walks, .726 SLG%, .494 OBP (1.220 OPS), 3-for-3 stolen bases.
• J.P. France: Conference play: 4-1, 2.19 ERA … Last 3 Starts: 2-1, 1.42 ERA, 25.1 IP, 20 K, 7 BB, 8 R, 4 ER, .196 Opp. Avg. . . . Has made 14 starts, and pitched at least 6.0 innings in 12 of them. In those 12 starts (subtracting a 3.0-inning outing in which he allowed eight runs at UCSB), France has compiled a 2.96 ERA with 63 strikeouts, 23 walks and 28 earned runs in 85.0 innings.
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Williams Named American Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year; Brown on Second Team
Senior first baseman Hunter Williams was named the American Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year and a unanimous first-team all-conference selection, and redshirt junior outfielder Grant Brown was selected to the second-team in a vote by the league's coaches. It is the first all-conference honor for both players. Williams is the eighth Tulane player to earn conference Player of the Year honors, and the first since Mark Hamilton was Conference USA Player of the Year in 2006.
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Strength of Schedule
Tulane's schedule ranks No. 15 in the nation, according to the NCAA, while it's RPI sits at No. 74, as of May 22. The Green Wave is 10-9 vs. the RPI Top-25 and 14-11 vs. the RPI Top-50. Tulane's RPI ranking has moved up 195 spots since March 14, when the Wave had a 3-12 record and an RPI of 269. Only five teams have more than Tulane's 14 Top-50 wins – No. 3 Florida (21), No. 8 LSU (20), No. 2 North Carolina (19), No. 7 Kentucky (18), and No. 14 Arkansas (15).
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Double 'Em Up
Tulane leads the NCAA with 62 double plays turned – 14 more than the next team in the league. Tulane's average of 1.11 double plays per game ranks sixth. Second baseman Jake Willsey has spun 50 double plays this season, while shortstops Sal Gozzo and Kody Hoese have spurred 35 and 12 doubles plays, respectively. First baseman Hunter Williams has been in on 59 twin killings.
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Going Deep
The Green Wave have hit 66 home runs this season – tops in The American – including five against Memphis on May 18, four against Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 21, and four against Nicholls State on April 11. Three players have double figure home runs: Jarret DeHart and Hunter Hope lead the team with 12 homers, while Hunter Williams has 10 homers. Jake Willsey and Lex Kaplan each have nine home runs. The total of 66 home runs ties the 2016 team to rank 11th in program history, which is the most since the 2005 squad hit 85 home runs.
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Pitching Matchups
Tuesday
Tulane:Â RHP Corey Merrill, Sr. | 6-5, 4.88 ERA, 14 APP, 13 GS, 79.1 IP, 85 H, 43 ER, 65 K, 39 BB
USF:Â Â Â RHP Phoenix Sanders, Sr. | 5-2, 2.83 ERA, 14 APP, 14 GS, 86.0 IP, 79 H, 27 ER, 99 K, 22 BB
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RollWithUs   RollWave
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Players Mentioned
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