Augustana Baseball Hosts Sioux Falls Wednesday Afternoon

4/20/2021 11:51:00 AM

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- After sweeping Concordia-St. Paul last weekend, the Augustana baseball team hosts crosstown rival Sioux Falls Wednesday afternoon for a doubleheader at Karras Park Home of Ronken Field.

The Games
First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. In compliance with Augustana's COVID-19 protocols, attendance for the games will be open to the public with a limited capacity.

All spectators must wear a mask unless actively eating or drinking. In addition, fans are encouraged to bring lawn chairs to help support physical distancing. The full spectator policy can be found here.

As always, live video and live stats will be provided on GoAugie.com/Live.

The Cougars
Picked to finish 13th in the NSIC, Sioux Falls comes into its matchup with Augustana at 12-14 overall and 8-14 within the NSIC. The Cougars started the season with a four-game sweep of Truman State, before being swept by Minot State in a three-game series and Minnesota Crookston in a doubleheader.

Sioux Falls then took two-of-three from Bemidji State, split with Minnesota Duluth, got swept by UMary and dropped one game to Northern. State. In their last three series, the Cougars have dropped two-of-three to St. Cloud State, swept SMSU in a doubleheader and took two-of-three from Wayne State.

The Vikings
Augustana completed its fourth sweep of the season last weekend with three wins against Concordia-St. Paul. The Vikings have not dropped a series this season.

On the mound, the 2021 Augustana pitching staff is starting to become one of the most prolific in school history. The Vikings lead the nation in strikeouts per nine innings with 12.7 and have struck out 302 opposing hitters through 27 games. In addition, the staff has struck out 10-or-more hitters in nine-straight games and has accomplished the feat in 20 out of 27 games this season.

Sophomore righty Ryan Jares leads the squad with 44 strikeouts and is followed closely by southpaws Tanner Brown and Koby Bishop, both of which have 43. Max Steffens, Caleb Kranz, Jed Schmidt, Evan Furst, Thomas Bruss, Tony Lanier and Parker Hanson all own double-digit strikeout totals as well.

On the basepaths, the Vikings lead the conference in stolen bases with 73, a mark that ranks sixth nationally. Senior shortstop Sam Baier is a perfect 15-for-15 in steals this season and leads the conference in that category. Outfielders Riley Johnson and Carter Howell are right behind Baier with 14 apiece.

At the plate, Augustana leads the conference with a .336 batting average which ranks 16th in the country. Six different Vikings have averages above .325, 10-or-more extra-base hits and more than 20 RBIs: Howell, Baier, Johnson, junior infielder Jordan Barth, junior catcher Will Olson and senior infielder Christian Kuzemka.

Player to Watch
Freshman catcher Drey Dirksen has maximized his opportunities this season. In 12 games played, with eight starts, Dirksen is hitting .412 (14-for-34) with four doubles, a triple, two homers and 14 RBIs.

One Last Thing
The Vikings are 33-14 in the all-time series with the Cougars. At home, Augustana is 22-7 against Sioux Falls and is currently on a three-game win streak in the series.

-- GoAugie.com --

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