No. 24 Frogs Ready To Host Dallas Baptist
2/23/2005 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 23, 2005
Fort Worth, Texas - The No. 24 TCU baseball team will begin a seven-game homestand on Thursday when they host Dallas Baptist in a three-game series. The Frogs are hoping to rebound from a disappointing loss to Sam Houston State on Tuesday night. Game time for the series opener is set for 7:00 p.m. at Lupton Stadium. The Frogs and Patriots will square off Friday in game two at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday's game is slated for a 4:00 p.m. start.
Frogs On KTCU
This weekend's games against Dallas Baptist can be heard live on 88.7 KTCU. Pregame will start 15 minutes prior to first pitch with the Dugout Show featuring head coach Jim Schlossnagle and the voice of the Horned Frogs, Chuck LaMendola.
About the Game
The Frogs are happy to get home as they open up a seven-game homestand this weekend. They are returning home after a four-game road swing that saw the Frogs win two and lose two. TCU is coming off a disappointing loss to Sam Houston State this past Tuesday, while the Dallas Baptist Patriots are fresh off a 7-0 shutout loss at the hands of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Both teams are hoping to use this weekend to get back on the winning track. The Frogs have won both series they've played this season, while the Patriots are 4-1 in their last five contests following two straight to Arkansas.
About the Frogs
The Frogs are currently in a stretch of 11 games in 16 days to open the season. TCU is 2-3 since starting out the season with a three-game sweep of the Utah Utes. Following a 7-3 loss to Texas Tech on Feb. 15, the Frogs travelled to Boca Raton, Fla. for a three-game series with Florida Atlantic. The Frogs won the bookends of the series, dropping only game two, 3-1, to the Owls. TCU dropped their second Tuesday contest of the season with a 12-6 setback in Huntsville this past Tuesday. The offensive punch is led by four players hitting over .400 to start the season. Shelby Ford is the team leader at .484, while Andrew Walker (.478), J.J. Estrada (.476) and Ryan Pack (.444) are right behind. Pack leads the squad with three home runs this season, after connecting for his first two against Florida Atlantic and another against Sam Houston State on Tuesday. Chad Underwood remains a steady go-to guy out of the pen with a 1-0 record and a 2.13 ERA in six appearances, while Lance Broadway has already picked up two wins.
About The Patriots
The Patriots are coming off just their third loss of the season, a 7-0 shutout in Lubbock on Tuesady at the hands of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Prior to the loss, Dallas Baptist had rattled off four straight wins, including a road win at Oklahoma State and a series sweep on the road against UT-San Antonio. DBU opened up the season 2-0 with wins over Texas Wesleyan and UT-Arlington before dropping two to the University of Arkansas. The Patriots are an offensive-minded club as they boast a team batting average of .315. Three players are above .400 with Jeremy Goldschmeding leading the way with a .432 average. Cody Montgomery leads the squad with two long balls, while Israel Victor has knocked in 10 runs. Randall Taylor is the leader on the pitching staff with two wins in four appearances. Stuart Sutherland sits atop the staff with a 2.79 ERA to go along with a 1-0 record in five appearances out of the bullpen.
TCU vs. Dallas Baptist Base Knocks
• Thursday's meeting between the two schools will be the 46th all-time meeting.
• TCU leads the series 30-15-0.
• The Frogs and the Patriots split four games last season.
• Dallas Baptist was 2-1 at Lupton last season, while the Frogs took a game from DBU in the SW Diamond Classic at LeGrave Field.
• Current TCU pitcher Lance Broadway transferred from Dallas Baptist and will not see any time on the mound this weekend as part of the transfer deal.
• Dallas Baptist is in its second season as a provisional Division I team and cannot participate in postseason play.
On The Mound For TCU
Stepping to the mound on Thursday night will be Brad Furnish, who will be looking for his first victory in a Horned Frog uniform. Furnish is four days removed from his last outting, a three inning stint against Florida Atlantic on Sunday. He held the Owl offense in check, surrendering a lone run on a pinch-hit home run. The home run was just one of two hits he surrendered, while he struck out three and walked none. On the season, he is 0-1 with a 4.82 ERA.
Friday night will see Sam Demel on the mound for the Frogs. Demel was the tough-luck loser against Florida Atlantic on Saturday night as he surrendered only three runs (two earned), but couldn't get any offensive support. He struck out a career-high seven batters, but walked five. He will be searching for his first collegiate victory. He ranks second on the squad with 12 batters struck out.
On Saturday afternoon, Tim McGough will make his third start of the season. In his last outting, McGough picked up the win against Florida Atlantic as he went five innings, allowing only two runs on eight hits. He struck out four and walked only one. He is 1-0 with a 2.16 ERA.
Back In The Groove
After a tough series in Florida that saw Shelby Ford collect only one hit in 11 at-bats, Ford broke out of his mini-slump with a 4-for-5 day at the plate. The four hits produce four RBI, highlighted by a two-run home run, his first of the season in the fourth inning. Ford leads all hitters with a .484 (15-31) batting average.
Looking For Some Relief
In the Frogs 12-6 loss at Sam Houston, they used a season-high seven pitchers, all of whom gave up a run. The back-breaker was the nine batters that the Frog pitching staff walked as three of them came home to score and another drove in a run. Zach Ashwood started for the Frogs and went 2.2 innings, allowing only two runs. Lance Broadway walked four in his 1.2 innings of work and suffered the loss as he gave up three runs on just two hits. On a positive note, three Frogs made their season debut on the mound as Chase Perry, Will Skelton and Jake Friemel each got some relief work in.
