No. 19-Ranked Augustana Baseball Closes Regular Season at Upper Iowa

5/6/2021 2:12:00 PM

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- The No. 19-ranked Augustana baseball team is set to finish its regular season this weekend with a three-game series against the Peacocks of Upper Iowa.

The Games
Baseball commences on Friday with a doubleheader starting at 1:30 p.m. in Fayette, Iowa, at Robertson Woods Field. Game three's first pitch is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. Live video and live stats will be available on GoAugie.com/Live.

The Peacocks
Upper Iowa comes into its matchup with Augustana at 13-23 overall and 11-18 within the NSIC. In its most recent series, Upper Iowa split a doubleheader with Wayne State and currently sits in the 11 spot in the conference standings.

At the plate, the Peacocks are led by freshman Jake Hilmer who is hitting .367 with 47 hits, seven doubles, two homers and 19 RBIs. On the mound, Upper Iowa is led by senior Duncan Snider. Snider has started 11 games this season and owns a 3.70 ERA with 60 strikeouts in 58.1 innings pitched.

The Vikings
Augustana comes into its matchup with Upper Iowa at 28-9 overall and 24-9 within the NSIC. Currently, the Vikings are second in the standings and would play UMary in the first round of the best-of-three NSIC Tournament, however, the result of the series will decide the final seedings and opponents.

Nationally, Augustana moved from No. 20 to No. 19 after going 4-1 last weekend with a doubleheader sweep of then No. 11 Minnesota State and a series victory over Wayne State. In the first installment of the Central Region Rankings, the Vikings were one of eight teams listed as under consideration for an automatic bid to the regional tournament.

The Viking pitching staff leads the country in shutouts and is second in strikeouts per nine innings. Augustana leads the NSIC in total strikeouts as well with 398 in just 37 games. With two more strikeouts, the Vikings will hit the 400 mark for just the fourth time in school history.

Presumably, if the Vikings strike out two Peacocks in game one, they will have accomplished the feat in just 38 games. In comparison, the 2019 team struck out 449 opponents in 59 games, the 2017 team struck out 499 in 59 games and the 2018 team struck out 559 in 61 games.

At the plate, the Augustana bats lead the conference in batting average, runs, hits, doubles, homers, RBIs, total bases and slugging percentage. On the basepaths, the Vikings are second in the country and first in the conference.

Player to Watch
Junior catcher Will Olson has been tearing the cover off the ball and finds himself in second-place in the NSIC in home runs with 12. On the season, Olson is hitting .346 with 37 hits, 33 RBIs and eight doubles.

One Last Thing
The Vikings are 23-4 in the all-time series with the Peacocks with Augustana currently on a six-game win streak.

-- GoAugie.com --

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