NEW ORLEANS — The Green Wave baseball team returns to New Orleans to take on Wichita State for their first game in 12 days.
TULANE RETURNS HOME TO FACE WICHITA STATE
• The Green Wave baseball team returns to New Orleans to take on Wichita State for their first game in 12 days.
• Tulane was set to play a four-game series last weekend at USF, but the series was postponed due to COVID-19 related issues within the Bulls’ program.
• The first pitch for Friday’s doubleheader is set for 2 p.m. (CT). On Saturday, the two teams will meet for a single game, beginning at 4 p.m. The series will conclude on Sunday with the first pitch slated for 11:30 a.m. All four games will be aired live on ESPN+ and can be heard on WRBH 88.3 FM.
• The Green Wave will look to build off the momentum from their 3-1 series win over Memphis back on April 1-3.
AROUND THE HORN WITH THE WAVE
• Tulane enters its matchup with Wichita State in the midst of a three-game winning streak.
• Tulane currently owns a .268 team batting average and an overall team earned run average of 3.90, which ranks second in the American Athletic Conference.
• The Green Wave rank second in the American Athletic Conference in triples (9), team ERA (3.90). The Green Wave also rank third in the league in doubles (50), WHIP (1.31) and stolen bases (38). In addition, Tulane holds an AAC ranking of fourth in walks (110) and fifth in fielding percentage (.968).
• Collin Burns (.354) and Jacob LaPrairie (.353) both own batting averages over .300. Freshman Bennett Lee leads the team with a .404 batting average, heading into the weekend.
• Lee has recorded two-or-more hits eight times.
• Junior Luis Aviles leads the team with 23 RBI, while Burns has collected a team-best 40 hits.
• Junior Jack Aldrich will make his team-best eighth start on Friday.
SERIES HISTORY
• Tulane’s matchups with Wichita State will mark the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th all-time meetings between the programs.
• The Green Wave own a 9-7 all-time series lead.
• The Green Wave’s matchup with Wichita State will mark the first meeting since 2019.
• Tulane has dropped three of the last five games, but have split the last 10 meetings with the Shockers.
SCOUTING THE SHOCKERS
• Wichita State enters its matchup with Tulane, having won its last seven games, outscoring its opponents by a 48-11 mark.
• The Shockers finished non-conference play with a 12-8 mark. WSU dropped a pair of games to then 17th-ranked Oklahoma State and then lost one game to then 13th-ranked Arizona.
• Wichita State opened conference play by facing Houston in back-to-back weekend series. The Shockers defeated the Cougars in seven of the eight meetings.
• The Shockers are led by head coach Eric Wedge. The Wichita State alum is in his second season with the Shockers. In his inaugural campaign as head coach at WSU in 2020, Wedge immediately made an impact, helping the Shockers post a 13-2 record before the season was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Wichita State ended the season on a 12-game winning streak — its longest streak since 2008.
• Wedge spent 10 seasons as a Major League Baseball manager, as he spent seven seasons with the Cleveland Indians. In 2007, he was named American League Manager of the Year. He then would spend three seasons with the Seattle Mariners (2011-13).
• The Shockers have five players with batting averages over .300 with Corrigan Bartlett leading the way with a .364 average.
• Wichita State also has shown some power this season with 26 home runs as a team. Garrett Kocis has a team-best 10 home runs this year.
• Aaron Haase has proven to be a shutdown closer for the Shockers with a team-best seven saves and an earned run average of 1.98.
RECAPPING THE LAST TIME OUT
The Tulane University baseball team opened American Athletic
Conference play on a high note on April 1-3, as it took three of four games from the University of Memphis and picked up a midweek win over Jackson State on March 30.
Listed below are some of the key stats and figures from the team’s five games from March 30 – April 3.
.588 – Freshman Jacob LaPrairie batted .588, going 10-for-17 at the plate.
.500 – Freshman Bennett Lee totaled a batting average of .500, as he went 10-for-20 at the plate.
.327 – As a team, Tulane batted .327.
39 – Tulane scored 39 runs.
28 – Tulane freshman collected 28 hits.
26 – Green Wave weekend starters worked 26.0 innings.
25 – Green Wave weekend starters struck out 25 batters.
23 – Tulane outscored its opponents by 23 runs.
14 – The Green Wave moved above .500 and now own a 14-13 record.
4 – Tulane won four games on March 29-April 4.
2.80 – Tulane posted a team earned run average of 2.80.
2 – Tulane is currently tied for second in The American.
1 – After six weeks of college baseball, Tulane leads The American in doubles and triples.
TULANE BASEBALL MOVES TO 18 PERCENT CAPACITY
• Tulane University Athletics announced this week an increase in capacity for Green Wave baseball games inside Greer Field at Turchin Stadium.
• In accordance with state, local and American Athletic Conference guidelines while maintaining six feet between seating pods, capacity for remaining games will increase to 18 percent.
• With this announced increase, Tulane Athletics has a limited number of tickets available to the general public for purchase.
BURNS NOTICE
• Redshirt sophomore Collin Burns currently leads the team in runs scored (30), hits (40), doubles (11), triples (3) and total bases (60).
• He leads The American in doubles and triples. His 11 doubles and three triples rank in the top 30 nationally.
• Burns opened the season by hitting safely in nine straight games. He currently is riding a team-best 10-game hitting streak.
• He matched his career high with three hits while leading off against La. Tech on March 21.
• Six of his 14 RBI have come with two outs.
BENNY BARRELS
• Tulane freshman catcher Bennett Lee leads the Green Wave in batting average (.404), slugging percentage (.667) and on base percentage (.477).
• Lee is currently tied for the team lead with three home runs.
• The Florida native is now batting a team-best .471 in his last 10 games.
OLTHOFF PICKS UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF
• Tulane right-handed pitcher Braden Olthoff was masterful on Feb. 26 at then No. 5-ranked Mississippi State, as he guided the Green Wave to a win over a Top 5 opponent for the first time since 2014.
• Olthoff struck out a season-high 11 La. Tech batters on March 19.
• It was the fourth time he racked up double-digit strikeouts in just nine starts for the Green Wave dating back to last season.
• Olthoff struck out six batters in 8.0 innings of work while only allowing one run on just two hits en route to his first win of the season.
• Against Troy, Olthoff struck out a season-high nine batters and allowed just two runs to lead the Green Wave to a 9-4 victory over the Trojans.
• In six outings this year, Olthoff owns a 3.00 earned run average and is holding opponents to a .243 batting average. He also leads the staff with 36.0 innings pitched and 40 strikeouts.
SO CLOSE
• In 2021, Tulane has suffered eight losses by two runs or less.
• In its matchup with then No. 5-ranked Mississippi State, Tulane was four outs away from completing a three-game sweep of the Bulldogs on the road.
• Tulane also held the lead in all three games at Mississippi State, heading into the bottom of the ninth.
• In the Green Wave’s lone loss against Western Kentucky on March 7, Tulane held a two-run lead heading into the seventh inning.
• Tulane dropped a pair of games to Louisiana Tech by two runs falling 2-0 in game one (March 19) and 8-6 in game three (March 21).
• Against Grand Canyon, Tulane was edged by one run in game two on March 27.
• Against Memphis on April 1, the Green Wave dropped a 4-3 decision in game one against the Tigers.
THE HIT PARTY
• In the series finale against Louisiana-Lafayette on Feb. 21, Tulane posted a season-high 20 hits.
• This season, Tulane has totaled 10-or-more hits in 12 games. The Green Wave collected 10-or-more hits in all four of their wins on March 29-April 4.
MR. RELIABLE
• Redshirt junior Justin Campbell has established himself as a reliable pitcher out of the bullpen for the Green Wave
• Campbell has appeared in 13 of Tulane’s 27 games this season. His 13 appearances rank fourth in The American.
WORKING OVERTIME
• The Tulane baseball team got its money’s worth at the diamond during opening weekend, as it began its 114th baseball season.
• In all three games with in-state rival Louisiana-Lafayette, nine innings weren’t enough to decide the outcome.
• Games one and two both went 10 innings with the series finale going 12 frames.
• During the first weekend of Division I collegiate baseball, 20 games went into extra frames.
• Tulane and Louisiana-Lafayette were the ONLY teams in Division I to see all three of its opening weekend games go into extra frames.
A THREE-HEADED MONSTER
• The Tulane baseball team returns all three players from its 2020 rotation for this season in the form of Braden Olthoff, Jack Aldrich and Donovan Benoit.
• The Green Wave trio combined for an 8-0 win-loss record, posted a 1.89 earned run average, logged 66.2 innings, struck out 83 and held opponents to a .181 batting average.
ESPN+ THE HOME FOR TULANE BASEBALL
• Tulane University baseball games will be more accessible than ever, as the program announced today that all 33 home games will be aired exclusively on ESPN+ for the 2021 campaign.
• Televised Tulane baseball road games will be announced on a weekly basis. Fans should check back on TulaneGreenWave.com for the latest broadcast information.
TULANE LOOKS TO BUILD OFF STRONG 2020 START
• The Green Wave will look to build off of their momentum from the 2020 campaign.
• Tulane finished the year with a 15-2 mark, which matched its best start to a season since 1972.
• The Green Wave closed the year on a nine-game winning streak – the program’s longest since 2010.
• Tulane also posted an incredible 11-1 record at home.
TULANE RANKED AMONG THE FAB 50
• The Green Wave enters the 2021 season ranked among the Fab 50 by Collegiate Baseball.
• Tulane checked in ranked No. 43.
• The Green Wave were one of five teams ranked in the Fab 50 from the American Athletic Conference.
BRINGING HOME THE PRESEASON HARDWARE
• Following a 2020 campaign where right-handed pitcher Braden Olthoff posted a 4-0 record in just four starts while recording a microscopic 0.32 earned run average with 47 strikeouts across 28 innings of work, folks across the country are starting to take notice.
• Prior to the 2021 campaign, Olthoff was recognized as the American Athletic Conference Preseason Pitcher of the Year.
• Olthoff has also earned preseason All-America honors from Perfect Game, Collegiate Baseball and D1Baseball.
MINDER EARNS PRESEASON NOD FROM THE AAC
• Redshirt junior Trevor Minder was named to the preseason all-league team this past December.
• Minder earned the preseason all-conference nod following a 2020 campaign where he finished the year with .359 batting average, three home runs and 14 RBI. In addition, the Springfield, Illinois, native posted 23 hits, five doubles and scored a team-best 20 runs.
• Minder also led The American in runs scored.
FIVE YEARS WITH JEWETT
• Tulane baseball head coach Travis Jewett begins his fifth season in Uptown this spring.
• Jewett owns a career record of 113-105.
• In each of Jewett’s first three seasons at Tulane, the Green Wave have steadily improved in batting average, hits, runs, home runs, RBI and slugging percentage.
JEWETT WELCOMES 20 NEW PLAYERS
• Earlier this fall, Travis Jewett announced the addition of 20 members of the 2020 recruiting class.
• The 2020 class marks the fifth under Jewett.
• Joining the Green Wave for the 2021 season will be: Aaron Ball, Matthew Bihm, Walker Burchfield, Andres Castro, Zach DeVito, Chase Engelhard, Jared Hart, Tyler Hoffman, Brandon Howell, Keaton Knueppel, Jacob LaPrairie, Bennett Lee, Blake Mahmood, Jake McDonald, Kennedy Norton, Camryn Szynski, Lane Thomas, Turner Thompson, Brian Valigosky and Charlie Yanoshik.
GETTING IT DONE IN THE CLASSROOM
• This past fall, Tulane baseball continued to excel at a high level in the classroom, as 36 players earned their way onto the 3.0 club.
• As a team, Tulane posted a fall semester GPA of 3.367.
• Prior to the fall semester, the Tulane baseball team received the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Team Excellence Award for the fourth year in a row.
• The Green Wave are one of just 22 NCAA Division I baseball programs who have received the award in four consecutive years and one of just four American Athletic Conference programs along with Cincinnati, East Carolina and Memphis to earn the recognition.
• Tulane has posted a team GPA of 3.0 or better in nine straight semesters.
PLEDGE PER WIN
· Tulane fans can ensure that every Green Wave win makes a lasting impact this season by joining the Pledge Per Win campaign.
· Fans can participate in the Pledge Per Win campaign by pledging to give $5, $10, or $25 to the Green Wave Club for each game the Tulane Baseball team wins this season.
· Additionally, supporters are encouraged to pledge $1 for every strikeout by Tulane pitchers this season. Fans interested in enrolling in the Pledge Per Win and Pledge Per Strikeout campaigns are encouraged to visit www.GreenWaveClub.com/ppw.
HASKIN DRAFTED BY THE ORIOLES
· Tulane baseball outfielder Hudson Haskin was selected by the Baltimore Orioles with the 39th overall pick in the 2020 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
· Chosen with the second selection in the second round of the MLB Draft, Haskin becomes the highest-picked outfielder in program history topping Jason Fitzgerald who was taken No. 41 overall in the 1997 draft.
· Haskin extends the Green Wave’s streak to nine consecutive years with at least one player selected and becomes the third player in program history to be selected in the second round joining first baseman Mark Hamilton (St. Louis Cardinals, 2006) and pitcher Steve Mura (San Diego Padres, 1978).
· Haskin garnered significant national recognition prior to the 2020 season when he was named a Preseason All-America Second Team selection by Collegiate Baseball, Perfect Game/Rawlings, D1baseball and the NCBWA, respectively.
LOOK GOOD. FEEL GOOD. PLAY GOOD.
· The Tulane University’s uniform combinations are some of the most unique in all of collegiate baseball.
- The Green Wave baseball team features 33 different uniform combinations.
{Courtesy: press release from Tulane Athletics}
