UH will have to switch gears toward Sam Houston and forgo the series-sweep loss to Louisville, an opponent it was always one step behind. | Justin Tijerina/ The Daily Cougar
UH will go up against Sam Houston (25-11) after coming off a series sweep loss to conference foe and then No. 10 Louisville at home. The Cougars enter the week with a record of 26-9 and are ranked as high as No. 12 nationally.
UH begins the week with a nation’s-best 1.81 staff ERA with 26 wins and eight saves.
Sam Houston is hitting .291 as a team, led by four Bearkats above the .300 mark. Anthony Azar leads the way with a .362 clip and has driven in a team-best 31 RBI, while Colt Atwood is hitting .351 with a team-high 53 hits and 28 runs scored.
In 313.0 innings, the Cougars’ pitching has fanned 229 hitters and walked just 60 — holding opponents to a .210 batting average.
Sophomore Jake Lemoine leads the team with 51 strikeouts in 60.2 innings, while junior Aaron Garza holds the lead in innings pitched with 65.1.
Senior Chase Wellbrock holds the team lead in saves with seven and is 2-0 with a 0.78 ERA in 12 appearances, while junior Jared Robinson is 2-1 with a 2.38 ERA in 14 appearances.
Offensively, the Cougars are hitting .266 with 150 RBI and 10 home runs. They have drawn 161 walks to 203 strikeouts and have swiped 54 of 67 bases this season.
Senior Casey Grayson paces the team with 22 RBI and is hitting .299, while senior Frankie Ratcliff has scored team-high 26 runs.
Correction: An earlier headline indicated that UH will face Sam Houston at home on Tuesday. The Cougars are traveling to Huntsville.
The schedule shows the game in Huntsville, not Cougar Field. The bearkats don’t come to town until the 22nd.