Blazers Prep For Bama

Published April 5, 2010 at 11:35 p.m.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The UAB baseball team will face Alabama for the second time in a week when the teams meet Tuesday at 6:35 p.m. CT at Sewell-Thomas Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

The Blazers (17-9) came out on top of a 6-4 decision last Wednesday against the Crimson Tide at Regions Park in Hoover, Ala. Harry Clark had three hits and two RBI in that game, while Luke Stewart and Ryan Ussery each homered in the Blazer win.

Alabama (19-8) was ranked 23rd in the country for last week’s meeting, and the Crimson Tide checks in at No. 24 this time around in the latest Baseball America poll. Alabama won two out of three games from Auburn over the weekend in SEC play.

UAB (17-9) enters the week on a hot streak with victories in 10 of its past 12 games. With a sweep of Saturday’s Conference USA doubleheader at UCF, the Blazers secured their sixth consecutive series victory dating back to last season. UAB, which sits in a four-way tie atop the C-USA standings after two weekends of league play, is 4-1 in midweek contests so far in 2010.

Pitching was the key to the Blazers’ success last week as UAB pitchers allowed 16 runs in their one loss and just 13 combined runs in their four wins, including only three total runs in the two games Saturday against UCF.

Ussery homered twice last week and drove in a career-high five runs in the series finale against the Knights. Ussery (.338) and fellow freshman John Frost (.364) continue to lead the Blazer regulars in batting average as the season’s midway point nears.

Taylor Dugas leads Alabama in batting average (.467), slugging percentage (.620) and on-base percentage (.598), while Ross Wilson tops the Crimson Tide in the power categories with six home runs and 28 RBI.




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