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ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Griffon Baseball continues a six-game home stand this weekend when the second place team in the MIAA, Nebraska-Kearney, visits the Spring Sports Complex for a four-game series.
 
THE GRIFFONS
MWSU split a non-conference doubleheader earlier this week against Truman State. The Griffons come in 20-16 overall and in a sixth-place tie in the MIAA with a 13-11 conference record. The team will be looking for a rebound after dropping its last two conference series, three games to one. MWSU is coming off a 14-1 win over Truman State, but have dropped seven of its last 10 games.
 
Offensively, MWSU is led by Ryan Degner and his .372 average. The senior was held without a hit Tuesday against Truman State but was red hot last weekend, going 10-19 with four home runs in four games at Fort Hays State. David Glaude is second on the team with a .367 average and leads the Griffons in slugging percentage (.708), on base percentage (.480), runs (40) and home runs (10). Cosimo Cannella leads the team with 31 RBIs. Glaude and Cody Childs have 30 runs batted in. As a team, the Griffons are batting .327 and the pitching staff is holding opponents to a .282 average.
 
Banks Born leads the Griffons' regular starters with a 4-1 record and a 3.08 ERA. A.J. Martinez is 4-0 with a 3.48 ERA in 11 appearances, five of them starts. His 31 strikeouts also lead the team, one more than Grant Woods' 30. Woods is 2-3 in nine starts with a 5.26 ERA. Josh Lansangan is 2-3 with a 6.82 ERA in eight starts.
 
NEBRASKA-KEARNEY LOPERS
The Lopers come into the weekend with a 23-12 overall record and a 17-7 mark in MIAA play that has the team in second place in the conference. UNK's 17 wins are tied with Missouri Southern for the most in the MIAA but the team's seven losses are four more than Missouri Southern's three.
 
Shane Sharkey leads the way with a .398 average. Dillon Schroeder is second with a .390 average on a team that is batting .341 collectively. Max Ayoub leads the team with 14 home runs. The Lopers have hit 51 long balls as a team and have seven players with at least four home runs. Ayoub's 50 RBIs also leads the team, along with his .779 slugging percentage.
 
Chris Sievers' 3.05 ERA leads the team. He is 3-2 in seven starts. Aaron Smith carries a 6-0 record and 4.05 ERA. Smith has appeared in 13 games with three starts and leads the team with 35 strikeouts. Mitchell Robinson is 4-0 with a 4.50 ERA in nine starts. As a team, Nebraska-Kearney has a 5.56 ERA and opponents are batting .296 against them. The Lopers have relied on simply outscoring the opposition, with opposing pitchers carrying a 9.08 ERA against UNK. The Lopers have outscored opponents 333-212.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
This weekend's series is the first of the Grifffons' last three of the regular season and the next to last home series of the season. The team will play two doubleheaders at Southwest Baptist next weekend before returning to St. Joseph to host rival Northwest Missouri State to close out the regular season on April 24-26. Seniors will be recognized that weekend in a series that could have serious postseason implications.

The top-eight teams in the MIAA standings will adavance to the postseason tournament, with the top-four hosting a best of three series the first weekend. MWSU is currently tied with Northwest Missouri State for sixth place, with just one game separating those two teams and eighth place Northeastern State. Northwest hosts Washburn this weekend while Northeastern State is at Central Missouri and will close the season with a home series against Missouri Southern. The Griffons also stand to gain position, sitting just a game behind fifth place Washburn and a game and a half behind fourth place Emporia State.